Ok, we all know about the torture memos. We know what's in them. The basic gist is that it's not torture unless it causes
organ failure or death. We also know that it does not matter if organ failure or death occurs, because the President can choose which laws he wants to follow and which he can ignore. But let's look at the Senate Judiciary Committee.
More after the jump
Here's the goofy part: The Senate Judiciary Committee. Now, I have to confess that when I heard about the torture memos, I was, um, well, I was perturbed, to say the least.
I was glad to see several of the Senators on the Judiciary Committee ask some tough questions during the confirmation hearings. It was good to hear Senator Biden talking about becoming like our enemies. It was good to hear Senator Leahy talking about the White House Counsel and Attorney General nominee contemplating the abdication of 800 years of law, the Magna Carta.
Now, for those of you who don't know, the Magna Carta was forced upon King John of England in 1215 by a rebellious barony determined to end the arbitrary and capricious reign of a tyrant. The barons made the stunning assertion that even the king is not above the law. As Mr. Leahy pointed out, the memos contemplate scenarios where the President may in fact be above the law.
Torture, as discussed in the memos, seems to be a much more restrictive definition than the Geneva Conventions define it. Mr. Biden rightly discerned that Mr. Gonzales was obfuscaing. And as if to amaze the world, Biden told Gonzales, "I love you."
But the bee in my bonnet today, the burr under my blanket, the Galactic Hemhorroid that is bugging my ass today is the question that wasn't asked. It's a simple question, but one that requires an answer. It in fact calls out to the Heavens for response.
Humor me. Imagine Senator Sorceress Sarah, ranking Democrat of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Senator Sarah: Mr. Gonzales, I have listened to the questions that my esteemed colleagues posed to you and have carefully considered your thoughtful answers, and I do appreciate them. They have been simultaneously illuminating, infuriating and confusing. So in order to comprehend everything I have heard here today, I have to ask just one question. In fact, I would be remiss if I did not ask:
HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?
I mean, in what universe could the counsel to the American President even contemplate the circumstances where the President can ignore the laws passed by Congress? You suggested that the President could ignore the laws he considers unconstitutional yet the Constitution itself reserves the power of Judicial Review for, oddly enough, The Judiciary! The fact is, sir, that there are NO CIRCUMSTANCES where the President has the authority you contemplate.
And really, Mr. Gonzales. Torture? Damned bloody torture? In what universe could any decent human contemplate the appropriateness of ... TORTURE!!! The Spanish Inquisition was about ... Torture The Holocaust was about torture. Americans were outraged when we saw film of American POWs in Vietnam blinking in morse code the word, you guessed it, TORTURE.
Were we outraged because it was bloody VC torturing Americans? NO, we were outraged because torture is evil. Not merely unjustifiable. Not simply bad. Not even inexcusable. EVIL. No other word leaps to mind so readily when the idea of torture is invoked. And yet here is Alberto Gonzales advising the President on a viable legal defense of evil.
So I put the question to you again, and I beg you to consider your answer carefully:
HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?
Becasue if you have, we can get you some help. We can make sure that you are never a danger to yourself or to others again. If you have indeed lost your mind, you have a defense. But if you are rational, and you still contemplate these things, then I am afraid I will have to ask the bailiff to place you under arrest for conspiracy to commit mayhem.
Alberto Gonzales: I don't recall. Can I get back to you on that?
Sorceress Sarah