Here’s an interesting example of the dynamic discussed in the previous post; that is, the possible coming together of ideological “opposites” in the name of change and progress. This example comes from Britain, following the curious merger of the Tories (conservative party) and the Liberal Democrats. As Greenwald neatly puts it in his essay: “how citizens of vastly divergent political philosophies can align.”
Earlier this month, when asked about investigating the crimes of the Bush Administration, Obama had some good things to say, but ended with the statement that he was more interested in looking forward than back. Give that line a try the next time you get pulled over…
Officer: “Do you know why I stopped you?”
Driver: “Interesting question, officer, but I’d rather look forward than back.”
It wouldn’t work, because bullshit is not tolerated in that particular real-life situation. Unfortunately, the world of politics has a much higher threshold.
Jane Mayer’s recent book The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How The War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals is a detailed exploration into the Bush Administration’s embrace of illegal detention and torture. It focuses on the secret legal gymnastics they went through to “justify” criminal acts. Why so secret? Because every time a decent, sane, law-abiding person saw what they were doing they reacted with disbelief, horror, and disgust. So the corrupt inner circle wrapped themselves in the flag, worked in the dark, and barked menacingly when anyone approached.
Dick Cheney was, of course, the heart of darkness. David Addington served as his junkyard dog, and John Yoo was their legal chihuahua. (By the way, shame on U.C. Berkeley for employing Yoo, and shame on Stanford for harboring Condi Rice. These institutions obviously have no moral standards.) Yoo and Addington, with their “creative” legal interpretations, paved the way for Cheney and Bush to steer the Executive Branch into dictator land. (To get a sense of how these two yahoos operate, look up coverage of Addington and Yoo’s contemptuous performance before the House Judiciary subcommittee last summer.)
Immediately after 9/11, one of the things that should have happened was an investigation, which would have revealed the incompetence and laziness of the CIA and Bush Administration which, sadly, allowed the hijackers to succeed. With some honest reflection, these institutions could have learned from their mistakes. But the reality was that the two Georges responsible, Tenet and Bush, quickly agreed that there would be no investigations (they knew what they would find). Instead, they pointed in other directions, and overreacted in some very destructive ways, stirring up lots of fear, hatred, and violence. Here’s a sampling from Mayer’s book:
“With little warning, a half-dozen masked men in black whisked two Egyptian asylum seekers, Muhammad Zery and Ahmed Agiza, into an empty office at Stockholm’s Bromma Airport. Working in swift, synchronized lockstep, the masked men cut off the Egyptians’ clothes with scissors and placed the shreds in bags. They forcibly administered sedatives by anal suppository, swaddled the prisoners in diapers, and dressed them in orange jumpsuits and hoods, with no cutouts for their eyes…the suspects were placed in handcuffs and leg irons and photographed.”
Let that sink in, figuratively speaking, for just a moment. Nice use of tax dollars, if you’re trying to win the hearts and minds of sadists around the world. And that’s just the initial apprehension. Snapshots from Abu Ghraib testify to some of the fun that followed. It’s illegal, unethical, immoral, inhumane, and should not be tolerated. As a human being, I’m appalled. As an American, I’m ashamed. We need a serious investigation to get to the bottom of what happened, and the people responsible need to be brought to justice. I’m not talking about the soldiers following orders as much as the chickenhawks giving the orders. We keep hearing platitudes like “no one is above the law,” but we keep seeing something entirely different play out, year after year, administration after administration. It’s time we got serious about following through on all these high ideals we like to spout.
Now I appreciate Obama’s desire to look forward. There are lots of challenges ahead that he needs to focus on. But he also needs to fully support Congress in their responsibility to investigate and prosecute the criminals that just vacated the White House.
Here’s the recent history lesson: America did not fully investigate and prosecute Iran-Contra, which was the Reagan Administration’s secret, illegal flouting of Congress and the Constitution. Many perpetrators and close observers of that crime came back to help run Bush’s latest round of lawbreaking and abuse of executive power. Until we stop this cycle, we will continue to suffer from it. That’s why the traffic cop usually ends up writing the ticket. People need consequences to correct their behavior. George W. Bush hasn’t encountered many consequences in his silver-spooned life. I think it’s time he got one.
Senator Pat Leahy is trying to build on the good foundational work of Representative John Conyers to shine some light on the many Bush crimes. You can support that effort at BushTruthCommission.com
Congress is mustering another attempt to investigate the abuses of power of the Bush Administration. This investigation is critical to the legitimacy and perpetuation of our government and the rule of law.
The previous administration ran the executive branch, not as public servants, but more like renegade CEOs. While in office, any attempts at investigation or oversight were dismissed with claims of “executive privilege” or “national security.” This ploy, when abused, can lead to dictatorship.
Thus, an important task for this 111th Congress will be to restore some balance of power between the branches of government. Toward that goal, the House Judiciary Committee released a report last month titled “Reining in the Imperial Presidency: Lessons and Recommendations Relating to the Presidency of George W. Bush.” The 486 page document is available online, and goes into good detail on the subject. It’s worth a look.
Also worth a look is Vincent Bugliosi’s recent book The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder. Here the famous Manson prosecutor focuses on just one aspect of the many Bush crimes: starting a war under false pretenses. Be forewarned, the author’s tone can drift toward bombast at times, but don’t let that scare you away, it’s mostly the voice of righteous indignation. Personally, I found the reading of this book to be a rather cathartic experience, a soothing balm to years of pent-up frustration.
A thorough investigation of the past eight years is sorely needed, to determine exactly what happened, how it happened, and to serve appropriate justice. Let your congress people know where you stand on the subject (and a short note to the current administration, at whitehouse.gov, might also help). Progressive government won’t occur by itself, it takes an active citizenry to really make it happen.