When the Justice Department publicly declared torture “abhorrent” in a legal opinion in December 2004, the Bush administration appeared to have abandoned its assertion of nearly unlimited presidential authority to order brutal interrogations.But soon after Alberto R. Gonzales’s arrival as attorney general in February 2005, the Justice Department issued another opinion, this one in secret. It was a very different document, according to officials briefed on it, an expansive endorsement of the harshest interrogation techniques ever used by the Central Intelligence Agency.
The new opinion, the officials said, for the first time provided explicit authorization to barrage terror suspects with a combination of painful physical and psychological tactics, including head-slapping, simulated drowning and frigid temperatures.
I want everyone who knew about this, every single person, from Gonzales himself down to the lowliest photocopy clerk, hauled before Congress, handcuffed, and thrown in jail. I want them FROGMARCHED past every remaining decent person in this country so that we can turn our backs. I want them publicly disowned by humanity.
God. And I don't pray much lately.
Via Cab Drollery, which also notes the unfortunate and rather sudden pussitude of Sen. Leahy who, if he isn't woken up and scared shitless by this, can consider his chair-hitting privileges fucking revoked.
A.
Leftist blogs laced with profanity have little credibity with anyone. Goodbye.
Posted by: Jacquline | October 04, 2007 at 08:30
OK - I get that politics is the art of the possible. But surely someone can show some moral spine somewhere and start calling these folks accountable.
Quite the inverse of the article, the fact that Abu authorized torture and lied is, to me, old news. It is just one more item of the flood of unbelievably bad items from the current WH.
What I'm really bothered by is that the current Congress seems to not be doing anything to make sure this doesn't happen again. Leahy's reversal bothers me even more. I understand that 50.0000001 isn't much of a majority, but the line has to be drawn somewhere.
Posted by: MapleStreet | October 04, 2007 at 09:28
If I turn my back on them how can I urinate on their feet?
Posted by: azportsider | October 04, 2007 at 10:44
I agree with the FROGMARCHING. While watching Ken Burns latest, their was a scene where after liberating a death camp the local residents all swore that they had no idea of what had gone on there. The soldiers noted that the trains never stopped running and that the air was thick with the stench of death. So they lined up the entire town, every last man, woman and child and made them walk through the camp and witness the piles of bodies in various stages of decay.
The right-wingers first claim that no torture, no atrocities of any kind happen, then when faced with the facts as at Abu Ghraib, they minimize the seriousness or claim that it was all justified. I'd love to see all of them have to make that march like the incurious folks in that German town.
Oh, and Jacquiline, fuck you.
Posted by: Jim Jenkins | October 04, 2007 at 10:48
We now have an acting AG, who is only marginally better than Abu G. He will serve until Congress recesses, then get a recess appointment. The only alternative to this is for the Senate to confirm a somewhat better AG, the one who has been appointed by Bush. Leahy has sent written questions to that appointee asking that he affirm that he is in fact better than Abu and the acting AG. I'm not sure why people are upset about that. Is he supposed to assassinate the acting AG?
Posted by: hoppy | October 04, 2007 at 11:02
sadly, people approve of the world of 24.
i do so love being the nazis!
Posted by: pansypoo | October 04, 2007 at 11:24