A Little Starch

Updated below:

Not being the front runner in the Democratic nomination race seems to have put a little starch into Senator Chris Dodd's demeanor. He seems a lot more eager and ready of late to take a lead in standing up for what is right. Angered by Mukasey's Senate testimony last week in which the former federal judge and prosecutor floated a legal "theory" that the President of the United States could, indeed, stand above constitutional statutes, Dodd declared on Monday:

"That is about as basic as it gets," Dodd said. "You must obey the law. Everyone must."

Senator Dodd, along with a considerable number of other legal and political observers were also upset when Mukasey dodged questions last week about whether or not so-called "waterboarding" was, in fact, torture. After dancing around giving a straight answer for a while, he wound up making the strange statement that he wasn't quite sure what was meant by the term "waterboarding".

Dodd's is also rejecting any "do-overs" on these key issues. He is rejecting any mulligans for a nominee who refuses to call torture by its proper name. Dodd's firm position is forcing the hand of some like Dianne Feinstein of California and Carl Levin of Michigan who were warning they might vote against Mukasey if he doesn't properly clarify his views. I agree with Dodd that you should be held to your first answer and not be allowed to "test" the limits of what you can get away with during the questioning.

Let's hope Dodd's leadership on these issues carry over in the immunity for telecoms and other serious constitutional issues.

Update: Jane Hamsher at Firedoglake informs us that HRC is on board in rejecting Mukasey as well. Good for her.