OK, the Republicans now have their torture bill ready to go.
Secret detention without charges and torture are fine (so long as the torure is not really, really bad or so long as it is conducted secretly), testimony given as a result of torture is fine if a judge says it’s reliable (it never is) and relevant, the president may interpret the Geneva Conventions however he pleases (funny, I thought the judiciary branch interpreted the law while the executive is charged with enforcing it), habeus corpus is out, and the admissability of secret evidence is still to be determined.
Turn toMarty Lederman for the gory details, or to either theNYTimes’ orWaPo’s editorials for a nice summary.
Were this bill to pass both houses of congress, I don’t see how in hell it would hold up in court, particularly before the Supreme Court as it is currently configured. And this bill has not yet passed, it’s not even out of committee yet.
It’s time for Democrats to step up. Common Article III of the Geneva Conventions caries the full weight of US law and must be followed. Anyone, be he a CIA interrogator or a president, who has violated US law with respect to the treatment of detainees must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. We will not compromise American values out of fear or our desire for revenge.
It’s time for us to hear from Harry Reid, John Kerry, Russ Feingold, Dick Durbin, and other Democratic senators. We also need to here Colin Powell’s rection to the Republican proposal.
Let’s get busy.