CIA Torture Camp- Is this right for the USA?

Today's Washington Post article revealing the secret CIA torture camps in Eastern Europe is important since it brings up a clear and convincing reason to impeach Bush and charge many in his administration with crimes.

The US law is clear (US Code 18, Part 1, Ch. 113C)

Any US citizen who is involved in committing torture or is part of a conspiracy to commit torture (Bush) is subject to severe penalties up to 20 years in jail.  This felony charge definitely rises to the level of "high crimes and misdemeanors" as grounds to impeach Bush.

Text of US anti-torture law follows with links to sources:

(US Code 18, Part 1, Ch. 113C):

§ 2340A. Torture
Release date: 2005-08-03

(a) Offense.-- Whoever outside the United States commits or attempts to commit torture shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both, and if death results to any person from conduct prohibited by this subsection, shall be punished by death or imprisoned for any term of years or for life.
(b) Jurisdiction.-- There is jurisdiction over the activity prohibited in subsection (a) if--
(1) the alleged offender is a national of the United States; or
(2) the alleged offender is present in the United States, irrespective of the nationality of the victim or alleged offender.
(c) Conspiracy.-- A person who conspires to commit an offense under this section shall be subject to the same penalties (other than the penalty of death) as the penalties prescribed for the offense, the commission of which was the object of the conspiracy.

link here

Time for all law abiding US congress people to call for a full investigation.  I guess the problem comes in finding enough congress people with respect for the law to push this.  John McCain should be able to lead in the Senate, but will he really stand up to Bush when it counts?

Bush would fall under section (c) Conspiracy since he probably hasn't personally participated in the torture.  The other US torturers who were hands on are facing some serious penalties if we ever resume the rule of law in this country.

The Dana Priest article is extensively diaried on dKos dKos diary link here

Direct link to the Washington Post article is here

Dana does not name the country where this secret prison is, but maybe we can expect that some more enterprising and less subservient journalists will expose this now that he has started the discussion.  Priest should have named the country, but I suppose he was worried about being disappeared since he has ample evidence from credible sources that the Bushies have done just that to hundreds of people.

Please join me in writing letters to the editor of your local papers, this torture as US policy should not stand.

•  Did government lawyers write the torture memos

  in the winter of 2001-2 precisely because Bush had laid himself open to charges by authorizing torture in his Memorandum of Notification to the CIA of Sept. 17, 2001?

  by lysias on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:15:14 AM PDT

  •  That may be the case

    Those memos were definitely written for a reason, and they certainly used tortured language in their reasoning.  But look at the reward for the "Torture Supporters":  Abu Gonzalez is Attorney General, Bybee is a judge for life, etc.  They have been well rewarded for their work.

    The whole torture policy of the Bush administration is just sickening to me.  I grew up thinking that the US was better than other countries.  Of course over the years I have learned that this is not necessarily so, but even for a realist these Bushies have gone way beyond the norm, they are disappearing people based on their whims.  

    And look at Jose Padilla, where is the "presumption of innocence" that Bush claimed for Scooter Libby in Padilla's case?  Bushies are shredding our constitution and just flat out violating US laws no matter that they have tried to cover their tracks with a bunch of torture justification memos.

    by MD patriot on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:21:04 AM PDT

•  You should have had as a choice:

  "Torture should be reserved for Republicans" in your poll.

  While I totally agree that this issue should be grounds for impeachment, it has to take a number behind committing treason, IMHO.

  by dabize on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:20:58 AM PDT

  •  Polls can't be edited

    I tried to add that choice, but it looks like polls can't be edited.

    Actually I'm not in favor of torturing anyone, it does not lead to accurate intelligence and just can not be justified.  The rules for interrogation that have been developed over the years allow plenty of coercion, but draw the line at certain things.  Jay Bybee and Abu Gonzalez want to cause pain "equivalent to that of major organ failure", that is way over the line.

    by MD patriot on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:28:03 AM PDT

    •  Sorry - lame joke

      I'm totally with you on this.

      I'm sure that the GOPers that are supporting Bush on this do so because they know what major organ failure is like - since they are already brain -dead themselves.

      by dabize on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:32:52 AM PDT

      •  Quick response on my LTE

        Thanks for the support, I just got a very quick response to my LTE for the local paper.  This Dana Priest article is definitely sweeping across the country and demands a response from our congress critters.

        Ask your congress critter these questions:

        1. Do you support the Bush administration's secret prison camps?  

        2. Should the Bush's be allowed to torture people in the secret prisons?

        by MD patriot on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:38:11 AM PDT

•  Barbara Boxer agrees on torture

  Boxer was just on Diane Rehm and spoke out against torture, although she didn't yet call for impeachment.  As Senator Boxer noted, torture endangers our service people and has also been shown to elicit false information from those being tortured.  This then leads our intelligence people off on false leads.  Of course they can just endlessly scoop up suspects, but what to do with all these bodies?  

  Bush chose to use a world wide network of secret prisons, is this what America stands for?

  by MD patriot on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:34:50 AM PDT

•  Nyah, nyah...doesn't count. :(

  Eastern Europe is not a U.S. Territory, so the rules of torture do not exist there, according to the moralfibercultureoflifecompassionateconservatives.

  That's why the camps are there, after all.  So Bush can torture, without it being "torture", as HeShallDefineIt defines it.

  by gingerbaker on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:39:47 AM PDT

  •  But US law does not say that

    You are right, the wingers don't care too much about US law, but from the law cited in the diary:

    (b) Jurisdiction.-- There is jurisdiction over the activity prohibited in subsection (a) if--
    (1) the alleged offender is a national of the United States; or
    (2) the alleged offender is present in the United States, irrespective of the nationality of the victim or alleged offender.

    So it sounds to me that number (2) means that any of these torturers need to stay out of the US if they want to avoid prosecution.  

    Who has been doing the torture?  Who flew the suspects to these camps?  It seems to me that quite a few US citizens are exposed to felony charges under the law.  Section (c) Conspiracy can reach quite high in the Bush administration, definitely including Bush and Cheney.

    by MD patriot on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:49:59 AM PDT

•  Granting Your Enemy Greater Power To Destroy You

  The difficulty with keeping political prisoners, which is torture in the first instance, is what to do with them? Executing political dissidents elevates their status to martyrdom. Long periods of incarceration often gives a sense of greater resolve to the survivor. The South African apartheid government made a hero out of Nelson Mandela, and while that cause was a just and honorable cause, the cause of radical Islam is violent and destructive. Eventually we have to let Islamic militants out of jail, or kill them. Either way we enhance their cause, another example of how George Bush is losing the war on terror.

  by agent double o soul on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 08:55:09 AM PDT

  •  Who determines the facts?

    But how do "we" determine who is really guilty and who was just in the wrong place when Bush's torture legion happened to scoop them up?  How many of the so-called "Islamic militants" were turned in by other Islamics who had a grudge against them?  With no trials, no rule of law, and no judicial oversight, the Bush torture promoting regime is free to just catch and kill anyone they deem an enemy.

    Are US citizens subject to arbitrary arrest and indefinite imprisonment?  Ask Jose Padilla about that, he's been in jail for 3 1/2 years based on the accusations of LIAR Ashcroft and LIAR Bush.

    Stop the torture, impeach Bush now.

    by MD patriot on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 09:18:43 AM PDT

    •  My Buddhist like concerns

      A plan to help the fighters on both sides reintegrate into society is critical, because this war was something of a cockfight staged for the amusement of a vengeful minded US public.  

      by agent double o soul on Wed Nov 02, 2005 at 10:30:31 AM PDT