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A Legacy of Legitimizing TorturePosted on Aug 28, 2007
The resignation of the torturer in chief was noted by his patron, the president, as an unfortunate day for American democracy. “It’s sad that we live in a time when a talented and honorable person like Alberto Gonzales is impeded from doing important work because his good name was dragged through the mud for political reasons,” President Bush lamented on Monday. What good name? After all, Bush picked Gonzales to be the nation’s highest law enforcement official only after Gonzales had proved his mettle for the job as White House counsel. His legal advice to the president was that torture is a legitimate option, because Bush’s self-defined “war on terror” wiped out all prior legal restraint and in particular “renders obsolete Geneva’s strict limitations on questioning of enemy prisoners.” Gonzales’ infamous memo to the president from Jan. 25, 2002, also rendered obsolete, among other constitutional safeguards, the division of powers that provides a congressional check on the executive branch. According to Gonzales’ professional judgment, the president was no longer bound to observe the 1996 War Crimes Act, which allows criminal prosecution of Americans for violating the Geneva Conventions and for “outrages upon personal dignity.” According to that law, both the president and his attorney general potentially would be subject to severe penalties, including death, for the systematic torture they authorized. No wonder Bush needed to appoint Gonzales as attorney general, lest some enterprising Justice Department lawyer dare expose the criminality emanating from the White House. Not a fanciful concern, given that we have since learned that the previous attorney general, John Ashcroft, had serious reservations about breaking the laws protecting fundamental human rights. Indeed, the most clarifying moment of Gonzales’ government service was his nighttime visit to Ashcroft’s hospital bed, where the then-White House counsel failed to deceive an ailing Ashcroft into authorizing an extension of government surveillance. Ashcroft refused and was protected from further harassment only by the intervention of FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III. The problem presented by Ashcroft’s display of legal integrity was eliminated when Bush gave his job to Gonzales. While the media are once again buying the White House backroom spin that the president’s error in the Gonzales scandal is one of misplaced loyalty to a friend who didn’t perform up to expectations, the truth is that Bush promoted Gonzales because of his assaults on the Constitution and not in ignorance of that sorry record. As the president put it in “reluctantly” accepting the resignation of “a man of integrity, decency and principle”: “As Attorney General and before that, as White House Counsel, Al Gonzales has played a role in shaping our policies in the war on terror. ... The PATRIOT Act, the Military Commissions Act and other important laws bear his imprint.” Frighteningly accurate testimony: that the Gonzales legacy will live on long after his government tenure. One aspect of that dreadful legacy, not often remarked upon, is that Gonzales shaped Bush’s selections of lifetime appointees to the judiciary that will preside for decades to come. As Bush observed: “As Attorney General, he played an important role in helping to confirm two fine jurists in Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito. He did an outstanding job as White House Counsel, identifying and recommending the best nominees to fill critically important federal court vacancies.” One of those critical vacancies was filled on Gonzales’ recommendation by the appointment of then-Assistant Attorney General Jay S. Bybee as a judge on the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Bybee distinguished himself in the eyes of Gonzales and the president by being the author of the 50-page “Bybee memo” of Aug. 1, 2002, which held that torturing al-Qaida captives “may be justified” and that international laws against torture “may be unconstitutional if applied to interrogations” conducted under President Bush. But Bybee went further than merely sweeping aside the restraints of international law, concluding, “Finally, even if an interrogation method might violate Sect. 2340A [of the U.S. Torture Convention passed in 1994] necessity or self-defense could provide justification that would eliminate any criminal liability.” The Bybee memo protected Gonzales and Bush from being branded with the “torturer” label by arguing that torture “covers only extreme acts ... where the pain is physical, it must be of an intensity akin to that which accompanies serious physical injury such as death or organ failure.” Oh? Maybe my opening sentence for this column was too harsh. Surely Gonzales, and the president who still adores him, intended all along to draw the line at organ failure. Previous item: You Say Chaos, I Say Accountability Next item: Abu Ghraib: One of Al's Claims to Fame Elsewhere: . CommentsAre you a Truthdig member yet? Login now, or register with Truthdig.
By bruce, September 11, 2007 at 12:21 pm # those ragheads were not tortured.we do not torture people muslims do.for all you sissy boys my basic training was worse than anything those pond scum muslims got.torture is having your head cut off, nails pulled out ect.for you commie traitors i give you the bgack of my hand.
By Nike, September 1, 2007 at 7:13 am # Gee, somehow the ‘editor’ forgot to post my earlier offering, where I placed the blame for Bush’s torture chambers squarely where it belongs - on the American people. Remember them? Every single American KNEW that Bush was running tortue chambers BEFORE Americans rewarded him with a second term in power, as the writers at ‘Truthdig’ know full well.
By Nike, September 1, 2007 at 5:27 am # Condemn torture all you will, but the American people knew damn well that Bush was running torture chambers BEFORE he was rewarded with another term in office, back in 2004.
By Nancy Hatfield, August 30, 2007 at 12:00 pm # 97638—well said. But we also need to support Democrats like Dennis Kucinich, and independent Mike Gravel, since they’re the only two candidates who have never been behind the war, getting out now because it’s all about the oil, they talk about the industrial military complex, single payer healthcare—not universal care which still keeps the insurance companies in the mix, NAFTA, and so on. the media gives them virtually no coverage and actually censors their remarks. I don’t see the so-called leading democrats speaking about these issues in any kind of detailed and honest way that is for the people—not these huge corporate industries. For instance, I noticed in the first Democratic National Debate, Mike Gravel made a statement that most of the other democratic candidates frightened him. “They frighten me”, because of their rhetoric regarding the war. I wanted to watch the debate again through “On Demand”. But guess what? HBO actually cut out all his comments regarding the other candidates. Censorship, plain and simple. Who was behind that on behalf of the other “leading” Democratic candidates?? So yeah, we need to support democrats to get these neocons out, but let’s be sure we’re not going to get more of business as usual. Let’s try to vote for real change in government and its corporate machine that does not serve the people.
By williamf, August 29, 2007 at 5:46 pm # There was no good name by the time he resigned. He played with Habeus Corpus rights, he fronted for and equivocated about torture...he used language to play around with legitimate questions thinking he could be cute and it would all go away. He smirked and mocked the congress of the people and worse still he tried to pull a fast one on a sick man. He was a hack and protector of the greatest liar of them all. He was up to his neck in spying on Americans. The guy was pure and simple the President’s man. Alerto Gonzales had nothing to do with the law and everything to do with power gone awry and unbridled arrogance. Alberto, you left us in a hell of a mess. Thanks for nothing.
By tyler, August 29, 2007 at 4:26 pm # We can’t forget the democrats who say they’ve been up in arms about this from the begining. Bulls**t. They’ve allowed this to go on because of the enormous potential oil revenues in iraq. Why would the democrats allow the construcion of 4 mega-bases in iraq if they say they are pressuring for a troop withdrawl. There has been enough supposed opposition from both sides to have done something by now. The former head of OPEC has estimated that the amount of undiscovered and untapped oil in iraq could be valued at 21 trillion dollars. What are the ‘hard costs’ of the war so far, between 500 billion and a trillion? Even with the critics saying the total cost is more like 2.5 trillion, thats still little more a drop in the bucket compared to the potential oil revenues there. The troops aren’t coming home anytime soon, and the democrats aren’t gonna do anything about it. Not only that, but they’re letting all the crooks from the administration, who are all jumping ship, get away. democracy my ass, that disappeared decades ago from the US. All hail oligarchy!
By tyler, August 29, 2007 at 4:25 pm # We can’t forget the democrats who say they’ve been up in arms about this from the begining. Bulls**t. They’ve allowed this to go on because of the enormous potential oil revenues in iraq. Why would the democrats allow the construcion of 4 mega-bases in iraq if they say they are pressuring for a troop withdrawl. There has been enough supposed opposition from both sides to have done something by now. The former head of OPEC has estimated that the amount of undiscovered and untapped oil in iraq could be valued at 21 trillion dollars. What are the ‘hard costs’ of the war so far, between 500 billion and a trillion? Even with the critics saying the total cost is more like 2.5 trillion, thats still little more a drop in the bucket compared to the potential oil revenues there. The troops aren’t coming home anytime soon, and the democrats aren’t gonna do anything about it. Not only that, but they’re letting all the crooks from the administration, who are all jumping ship, get away. democracy my ass, that dissapeared decades ago from the US. All hail oligarchy!
By Erik, August 29, 2007 at 11:26 am # Notice how President Bush’s statement that Gonzales’s name was dragged through the mud for political purposes fails to state which party did the name-dragging. This Administration did more to damage Gonzales’s reputation by turning the office of the Attorney General into a partisan agency than any Congressional hearing could muster.
By Forest Sprague, August 29, 2007 at 9:59 am # For America to regain our reputation in this world we must go back and investigate the stealing of both elections, over turn these elections as illegal then demand all the Supreme court justices that voted to have Bush elected resign and then demand the resignations of both Alito and Roberts. Why should we suffer for decades these partisan hacks. They are all supporters of the foulest traitors this country has ever let steal power.
By PACRAT, August 29, 2007 at 6:42 am # Bush’s opinion of Gonzalez has no value! Besides, who believes anything Bush has to say today - the man has no credibility! Bush is amoral and surrounded himself with other amoral cronies like Gonzalez. Of course, they all pretend to be Christians. When it is no longer politically advantageous, they will revert to their “normal” life styles. Everyone once in a while the facade cracks anyway - who could possibly condone Gonzo’s abuse of law? Condoning torture is a perversion of everything that made America great and respected. Not that it doesn’t go on every day in our prisons throughout this country! Now, however, that our perversions are internationally known, it is time for a change. We can only hope that our currently invertebrate congress gets a spine and restores again honor that Gonzo tried to destroy. Good riddance to him and the other 70 watt bulbs that support the white house policies!
By Lawrence Douglas, August 29, 2007 at 5:06 am # What a bunch of whinnying PXXSY, what ever happen to stepping down gracefully? Even Nixon went out with class. North took it on the chin with class. When they are caught with their dirty political hand in the honest American cookiejar, they cry like a bunch of brats when they are forced to suffer a little punishment. It truly shows the color of the character. But one always must be careful of what they wish for, because in this case I believe the replacement is even more corrupt.
By THOMAS BILLIS, August 29, 2007 at 4:59 am # Mr Scheer what you forget is that all this was done with the President’s and Alberto Gonzales’ ennablers the Democrats playing the rhythm section in the band.The damage that has been done in our name by Alberto Gonzales as consiglierie to the Don President George Bush will take a generation to unravel.I do not blame Alberto Gonzales for all that he has done.He did it at the direction of the Don Bush Corleone.He did not wake up and say gee I think I will go and visit Ashcroft and get him to sign on.The buck stops at the top and the top is George Bush Corleone. Add Your Comment |
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