Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Too Late?

It’s getting late and I’m really tired but I think there is something missing from the dialogue about the President’s parade for torture and the resistance of a few Senators and a multitude of military heavy hitters like Colin Powel to permitting “clarification”.

Let’s cut to the chase shall we? There is nothing vague and needing clarification about Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. "Common Article 3 prohibits cruel treatment and humiliation, and is pretty clear on that and as such is a pretty inflexible standard. Ask yourself…why would the Bush cabal object to this? They have admitted to interrogation outside of this standard several times and are, in fact, asking for permission to continue to do so. Bush is saying that he needs Congress to approve and legalize the criminal acts that he and his administration have already admitted to.

Why would it be necessary for Bush to be so adamant and in such a rush to have this illegal behavior legalized?

"Time is running out," Bush said on Friday. "Congress is set to adjourn in just a few weeks." So what's the hurry?

Might it be that the next Congress might not be so amenable to giving Bush legal cover? Would a Democratic Congress with subpoena power be inclined to call Bush on his illegal behavior?

You bet your sweet ass. Karl Rove and the rest of his minions have told Bush, Cheney, Rice and Rumsfeld that under present American law and International law they are all war criminals and that there is a mountain of evidence to support that claim. The Hamdan decision, if nothing else, was a statement by the court that the current and past behavior of the President has not been legal.

If they lose the cover of a rubberstamp GOP Congress then they are in heavy trouble. They have publicly admitted to war crimes and if their actions are not legalized by Congress before the wind changes then they can and will be tried as war criminals.

All the talk of “needing the tools to fight the GWOT” and “clarification” so that our interrogators know what is within bound is bullshit and the President is just trying to prevent his ass from being tried as a war criminal. He knows he is a guilty as sin and his only cover is to get his past actions “legalized” before it is too late.

He knows the axe could fall and is in a rush because he knows his only chance is when he has the entire Congress in his corner. It's now or never.

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