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As a Justice Department attorney,* I would like to comment on Obama's speech with regard to the issue of prosecutions over torture and the establishment of a Truth Commission, issues that have been the subject of much debate and discussion here. I know that there has been a fair amount of consternation based on the premise that the President has all but ruled out investigations or examinations into possible violations of the law concerning torture. Jesselyn Radack has presented one skeptical view, and others have agreed. Such skepticism is fueled, I think, by the President's few statements about this issue.
This was an opportunity for the President to address the issue of torture prosecutions and truth commissions more clearly. Indeed, I suspect that the expressed dissatisfaction from some progressives and discussions on sites like DailyKos raised the issue to a level where it had to be addressed today.
snip
But here's the point: although Obama's speech was powerful enough that he could have declared that there will be no further investigation or examination of the legality or illegality of the use of torture, and even though he did declare set positions on several key issues, I did not hear such foreclosure with regard to possible prosecutions.
Key passage:
I know that these debates lead directly to a call for a fuller accounting, perhaps through an Independent Commission.
I have opposed the creation of such a Commission because I believe that our existing democratic institutions are strong enough to deliver accountability. The Congress can review abuses of our values, and there are ongoing inquiries by the Congress into matters like enhanced interrogation techniques. The Department of Justice and our courts can work through and punish any violations of our laws.
That passage packs a significant amount of punch. A significant amount.
That statement, that language quoted above, was reviewed and approved by more than Obama and Rahm and Jon Favreau. You can rest assured that the language of that speech was vetted within the White House and by the Attorney General, by State and DOD, CIA and NSA. Presidents do not give a speech of such importance without serious review of what will be said. Okay, maybe the last one didn't. But I assure you this one does.
Emphasis and italics in the original.
Closing Gitmo and letting the Justice Department do its job is what those of us in the Jump Up and Down Hysterically Club have wanted.
Update
For a man who is supposed to be on vacation, Andrew Sullivan is on fire:
A simple note having now read the former vice-president's despicable and disgraceful speech. It confirms the very worst of him, and reveals just how callow, just how arrogant, and just how reckless and unrepentant this man is and has long been. There was not a whisper of regret or reflection; there was a series of lies and distortions, a reckless attack on a graceful successor, inheriting a world of intractable problems, and a reminder that while serious men and women will indeed move on, Cheney never will. He remains a threat to this country's constitution as he remains a stain on its honor and moral standing. I never believed I would hear a vice-president of the United States not simply defend torture but insist on pride in it, insist on its honor. But that is what he said, with that sly grin insisting that fear always beats reason, that violence always beats dialogue, and that torture is always an American value.
Update 2
Jesselyn Radack, a former attorney with DoJ and one of the skeptics mentioned above, agrees with the assessment about what Obama's speech today means to those who want investigations of torture.
I agree with his analysis of President Obama's speech (and appreciate him crediting me and other Kossacks with forcing the issue of torture prosecutions).
Radack, who was fired after being a whistleblower, does disagree with Lars about the DoJ's Office of Professional Responsibility, but that's a separate issue.
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