Over at Marcy Wheeler's joint—emptywheel.net, which you should be reading every day—bmaz takes a different look at the torture report summary in Torture? Obviously, But What About Litany Of Other Crimes?
So, just a quick thought here, and with a little prompting by Jon Turley, obviously there is torture, and outright homicide thereon, spelled out and specified by the SSCI Torture Report. As I have said on Twitter, there are many things covered in the SSCI Torture Report and, yet, many things left out.
There are too many instances in the SSCI Torture Report to catalogue individually, but let’s be perfectly clear, the failure to prosecute the guilty in this cock up is NOT restricted to what is still far too euphemistically referred to as “torture.”
No, the criminality of US Government officials goes far beyond that. And, no, it is NOT “partisan” to point out that the underlying facts occurred under the Cheney/Bush regime (so stated in their relative order of power and significance on this particular issue).
As you read through the report, if you have any mood and mind for actual criminal law at all, please consider the following offenses:
18 U.S.C. §1001 False Statements
18 U.S.C. §1621 Perjury
18 U.S.C. §1505 Obstruction of Justice
These are but a few of the, normally, favorite things the DOJ leverages and kills defendants with in any remotely normal situation. I know my clients would love to have the self serving, toxically ignorant and duplicitous, work of John Yoo and Jay Bybee behind them. But, then, even if it were so, no judge, court, nor sentient human, would ever buy off on that bullshit.
So, here we are. As you read through the SSCI Torture Report, keep in mind that it is NOT just about “torture” and “homicide.” No, there is oh so much more there in the way of normally prosecuted, and leveraged, federal crimes. Recognize it and report it.
Blast from the Past. At Daily Kos on this date in 2003—Did Gore subvert the democratic process?
Gore endorses Dean. Fans of the Vermont governor exulted. Most everyone else recognized it as yet another major step toward a Dean nomination.
And a small group have loudly complained that Gore has somehow subverted the democratic process.
Which is, of course, ludicrous.
To begin with, the presidential primaries are never a truly democratic process. The people of Iowa, NH, and the restof the February states have had a disproportionate level of influence. Illinois' legions of good Democrats have zero say in the election of our nominee. Neither do those in Minnessota. Or Massachussets.
Or do they?
In the past, they wouldn't have had a say. They didn't in 2000 (did anyone?). But technology has changed all that.
Tweet of the Day
Torture, police violence and Wall Street fraud are real issues, but not THE issue. The issue is an America with no accountability or justice
— @Will_Bunch
On
today's Kagro in the Morning show,
Greg Dworkin's jam-packed roundup included the torture report; the Surgeon General nomination; flu news; NJ's Bridgegate probe ends; polling on Brown, Garner cases & police cams and what to do about it; WTF with watermelons? Campus reaction to the UVA developments. Pelosi scores one on Schumer.
Emptywheel focuses on the key issue in the torture report: it's for exploitation, not intel.
Armando has an eye out for the CIA/Gop rebuttal, and raises questions about the next ACA repeal moves, plus the very weird "order" issued by a TX-based federal judge. A counter-intuitive call for torture pardons... from the ACLU!
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