by Kenneth J. Theisen February 10, 2008
You have to give the Bush regime credit for consistency. On the subject of torture it has consistently been in favor of it. And it has consistently put its beliefs into practice. Of course upholding immorality should not be something to brag about. But then I am not Dick Cheney who did just that. This week the VP told the Conservative Political Action Conference, “It’s a good thing we had them in custody, and it’s a good thing we found out what they knew.” He was referring to three top al Qaeda leaders who underwent waterboarding and other forms of torture at the hands of the CIA in 2002 and 2003. He also stated to the conservative group, that President Bush in permitting torture has “made the right decisions for the right reasons. And would I support those same decisions again today? You’re damn right I would.” In the past Cheney said the use of waterboarding was a “no brainer.”
This week the Bush regime openly acknowledged its use of
waterboarding. Its use was confirmed by CIA Director Michael Hayden
who attempted to justify its use to prevent catastrophic attacks on the
U.S. But Hayden also created doubt as to the legality of this torture
method. In testimony before the House Intelligence Committee he said,
“It is not included in the current program, and in my own view, the
view of my lawyers and the Department of Justice, it is not certain
that that technique would be considered to be lawful under current
statute.”
But Attorney General Michael Mukasey told the same committee that he
would not start a criminal investigation as to whether the past use of
waterboarding by U.S. agents was illegal. Mukasey admitted that the
Justice Department had authorized waterboarding in the past and that
was why the Department of Justice could not now prosecute agents of the
government for its use. The attorney general also stated that he
refused to say whether the use of the rack or thumbscrews constituted
torture. He said answering this question “would indicate the contours
of what may or may not be permitted under a program that is classified.”
And this week, White House spokespeople maintained that Bush can still
order the use of waterboarding as long as Bush authorizes it after
consulting with intelligence officials and the attorney general. In
other words, “we did it before and if we want we can do it again, so
screw you” seems to be the official Bush regime stance.
Amnesty International USA executive director Larry Cox was critical of
the latest developments in Washington. He stated, “Everyone in the
world knows that waterboarding is torture and illegal. The U.S.
government admits having done it. Yet the highest law enforcement
official in the land refuses to investigate this scandal.”
But while the Bush regime seems to accept almost any form of torture,
Louise Arbour, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, told the
press on February 8th “I would have no difficulty describing the
practice (waterboarding) as falling under” international definitions of
torture.
It is clear that the Bush regime will continue to use torture as long
as it continues in power. Can you accept this – and if not what will
you do to halt this regime’s crimes?