From the Center for American Progress
(and don't say I didn't warn EVERYONE about Michael Mukasey .. I surely did -
on here and at OpEd News
I also warned people about Alito and made myself SICK doing it.)
on here and at OpEd News
I also warned people about Alito and made myself SICK doing it.)
Bush's Legal 'Black Hole' Enters Seventh Year
Six long years ago today, "the first orange-clad, shackled and blindfolded prisoners arrived at Guantanamo's Camp X-Ray." Worldwide protests are marking today's anniversary. The ACLU notes, "Since that dark day in recent American history, more than 700 people have been detained without due process and not a single trial has been completed." For six years, Guantanamo has existed as an island outside the boundaries of law, staining America's reputation as a nation that respects the rule of law. In April 2006, the Center for American Progress laid out a comprehensive strategy for dealing with suspected terrorists after the closure of Guantanamo. "The best solution to the challenges of Guantanamo lies in working with our allies to create a Special Tribunal for International Terrorist Suspects in order to share the responsibility of detaining, trying, and imprisoning terrorists," wrote analyst Ken Gude. In June 2006, Bush declared, "I'd like to close Guantanamo." Two months ago, Condoleezza Rice echoed his point: "The President has said, and I fully agree, we would like nothing better than to close Guantanamo." But those words have proved to be little more than lip service. The Bush administration appears willing to leave office without addressing Guantanamo, leaving its successor to deal with the legal "black hole" it has created. Sign the ACLU's petition to close Guantanamo here.
BUSH FAILS TO HEED CONSERVATIVE VOICES: In June 2007, Bush's former Secretary of State Colin Powell said, "If it was up to me, I would close Guantanamo -- not tomorrow, this afternoon," explaining that "we have shaken the belief that the world had in America's justice system by keeping a place like Guantanamo open." Even former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee acknowledged that Guantanamo has become a damaging symbol for the United States and is "not in our best interests." Defense Secretary Robert Gates reportedly pushed to close Gitmo because he felt the detention facility had "become so tainted abroad that legal proceedings at Guantanamo would be viewed as illegitimate." Despite these and other prominent conservative voices who have spoken up for closing the facility, Bush has failed to act. Vice President Cheney, who has long expressed objections to shutting down Guantanamo, appears to have found renewed strength with the appointment of Attorney General Michael Mukasey. "I can't simply say we have to close Guantanamo," Mukasey told Congress during his confirmation hearings. The Financial Times reported recently that anti-Cheney forces inside the administration "had lost the intensity needed to have a realistic chance of closing the prison."
WHAT HAPPENS IN GITMO STAYS IN GITMO: Interrogation practices at Guantanamo have reportedly included the use of waterboarding and other torture tactics in violation of the Geneva Conventions. In November, a House Judiciary subcommittee held a hearing on the effectiveness of Bush's "enhanced" interrogation program and sought the testimony of Lt. Col. Stuart Couch, a former Guantanamo Bay prosecutor. Couch had declined to prosecute a "high value" detainee because he concluded at the time that the prisoner's incriminating statements
CONGRESS PICKING UP THE SLACK: In the absence of presidential leadership, Congress is stepping up to address the problems created by Guantanamo. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) has introduced legislation that would close the detention facility and restore due process rights to those being held at Guantanamo. Congress also passed a bill to require the CIA to adhere to the Army Field Manual on interrogation, which bans waterboarding, mock executions, and other harsh interrogation methods, but Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) recently placed a hold on that legislation. Additionally, Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Arlen Specter (R-PA), and Chris Dodd (D-CT) are still pushing legislation to restore habeas corpus review for detainees, one of the rights that was eliminated with the passage of the 2006 Military Commissions Act.
BUSH FAILS TO HEED CONSERVATIVE VOICES: In June 2007, Bush's former Secretary of State Colin Powell said, "If it was up to me, I would close Guantanamo -- not tomorrow, this afternoon," explaining that "we have shaken the belief that the world had in America's justice system by keeping a place like Guantanamo open." Even former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee acknowledged that Guantanamo has become a damaging symbol for the United States and is "not in our best interests." Defense Secretary Robert Gates reportedly pushed to close Gitmo because he felt the detention facility had "become so tainted abroad that legal proceedings at Guantanamo would be viewed as illegitimate." Despite these and other prominent conservative voices who have spoken up for closing the facility, Bush has failed to act. Vice President Cheney, who has long expressed objections to shutting down Guantanamo, appears to have found renewed strength with the appointment of Attorney General Michael Mukasey. "I can't simply say we have to close Guantanamo," Mukasey told Congress during his confirmation hearings. The Financial Times reported recently that anti-Cheney forces inside the administration "had lost the intensity needed to have a realistic chance of closing the prison."
WHAT HAPPENS IN GITMO STAYS IN GITMO: Interrogation practices at Guantanamo have reportedly included the use of waterboarding and other torture tactics in violation of the Geneva Conventions. In November, a House Judiciary subcommittee held a hearing on the effectiveness of Bush's "enhanced" interrogation program and sought the testimony of Lt. Col. Stuart Couch, a former Guantanamo Bay prosecutor. Couch had declined to prosecute a "high value" detainee because he concluded at the time that the prisoner's incriminating statements
"had been taken through torture, rendering them inadmissible under U.S. and international law."Couch's knowledge of Guantanamo's inner workings posed such a threat to the administration that officials prevented him from testifying before Congress. In December, the Senate sought the testimony of Col. Morris Davis, the former chief prosecutor for the military commissions at Gitmo. Davis resigned his position last fall because he felt the justice system had become "deeply politicized" and too willing to allow evidence obtained through torture. Unsurprisingly, the administration also blocked Davis from testifying. Last month, Brig. Gen. Thomas Hartmann, the current legal adviser at Guantanamo, refused to condemn waterboarding.
CONGRESS PICKING UP THE SLACK: In the absence of presidential leadership, Congress is stepping up to address the problems created by Guantanamo. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) has introduced legislation that would close the detention facility and restore due process rights to those being held at Guantanamo. Congress also passed a bill to require the CIA to adhere to the Army Field Manual on interrogation, which bans waterboarding, mock executions, and other harsh interrogation methods, but Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) recently placed a hold on that legislation. Additionally, Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Arlen Specter (R-PA), and Chris Dodd (D-CT) are still pushing legislation to restore habeas corpus review for detainees, one of the rights that was eliminated with the passage of the 2006 Military Commissions Act.
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