International Committee of Red Cross Says Bush Administration Guilty of War Crimes
By Nicole Belle Friday Jul 11, 2008 7:00pm
Download | play 
Download | play (h/t Heather)
It's something that has certainly been spoken of within the liberal blogosphere. I've seen the random bumpersticker or freeway blogger suggest it as well, but it is no longer something that can be written off as a partisan or extremist view. As Countdown guest host Rachel Maddow and George Washington University Law Professor Jonathan Turley discuss on Friday, the International Committee of the Red Cross sent a report last year to the CIA saying that the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo was unquestionably torture and the Bush administration officials that approved the treatment are war criminals.
Red Cross investigators concluded last year in a secret report that the Central Intelligence Agency's interrogation methods for high-level Qaeda prisoners constituted torture and could make the Bush administration officials who approved them guilty of war crimes, according to a new book on counterterrorism efforts since 2001.[..]
The book, "The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned Into a War on American Ideals," by Jane Mayer, who writes about counterterrorism for The New Yorker, offers new details of the agency's secret detention program, as well as the bitter debates in the administration over interrogation methods and other tactics in the campaign against Al Qaeda.[..]
Citing unnamed "sources familiar with the report," Ms. Mayer wrote that the Red Cross document "warned that the abuse constituted war crimes, placing the highest officials in the U.S. government in jeopardy of being prosecuted." Red Cross representatives were not permitted access to the secret prisons where the C.I.A. conducted interrogations, but were permitted to interview Abu Zubaydah and other high-level detainees in late 2006, after they were moved to the military detention center in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.
The book says the C.I.A. shared the report, which Ms. Mayer first described last year in less detail in The New Yorker, with President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
Login or Register to post comments.
it had to go public sometime.
This is one evil regime.
CoIntelPro for Pronktastic Democratic Victory Over SCLM, DIEBOLD, ESS and SEQUOIA! @ 1:
Haha, I was waiting for it too! Poor Turley looks so let down. Too bad someone can't give him the gift of Impeachment for Christmas.
Just one thing...
Please don't expect The Hague to prosecute your war criminals. At least not until you revoke the 'Hague Invasion Act'.
http://www.hrw.org/press/2002/08/aspa080302.htm
Signed by your President Bush in august 2002.
Could this have been planned?
Anyone else find it odd the Red Cross gives it's reports to the government, but doesn't publicly tell anyone? I did not know the Red Cross was a governmental branch. Who is the real criminal here? The one's committing the acts, or the one's that know and say nothing?
Let the war crimes tribunal begin.
I think the International Red Cross just earned a contribution check from me.
Nancy, do you see what's going on? Aren't you tired of covering up the crimes of this murderous administration? Or, are you afraid to open that Pandora's box of impeachment because it will implicate your own abeting of war crimes?
You can run but you can't hide. Someday the truth of your involvement will come out and it's going to piss people off.
Well duh. But so is Pelosi for taking impeachment off the table.
Well, they have shat upon our Constitution; and broken just about every international law on the books. They would probably be working on destroying intergalactic law if they're were intelligent interstellar lifeforms we interacted with.
When it comes to cronism and corruption, the heavens are the limit with BushCo.
May impeachment and BushCo's later prosecution for war crimes be swift and thorough.
It's nice to see that link, but I doubt that any US news outlet will follow up on this report. It will be treated as just another aberrant anti-US screed.
I would have to agree that Pelosi would be abetting and aiding a criminal, and so she would be guilty for war crimes as well. I can't imagine her running another term, but most likely she would become a high paying lobbyist.
I heard that the international community is going after the president Bashir of Sudan? for Daphur massacre.
Someone was telling me about this on the news while the TV was on, and I jump to conclusion that it was our president.
everyone quit whining and accept this ....nothing will be done to these criminals and thats the end of this story ..welcome to USA 2008
Off the table, I'm betting.
SC @ 11:
Americans can't get away with torture and war crimes any more in the new century.
Mayfield @ 16:
oh yeah?
whos gonna stop them??
They are also guilty of war crimes under USA Federal law:
The law defines a war crime to include a "grave breach of the Geneva Conventions", specifically noting that "grave breach" should have the meaning defined in any convention (related to the laws of war) to which the U.S. is a party. The definition of "grave breach" in some of the Geneva Conventions have text that extend additional protections, but all the Conventions share the following text in common: "... committed against persons or property protected by the Convention: willful killing, torture or inhuman treatment, including biological experiments, willfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health."
The law applies if either the victim or the perpetrator is a national of the United States or a member of the U.S. armed forces. The penalty may be life imprisonment or death. The death penalty is only invoked if the conduct resulted in the death of one or more victims.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_Crimes_Act_of_1996
this is a formal indictment of bush and cheney
and we know that congress has NO BALLS
to do the right thing and IMPEACH them both.
chickensh*ts that are only interested in keeping
their positions in congress, but don't mind destroying
the U S CONSTITUTION.
james rock @ 14:
What's a war crime here and there, when the economy is in such great shape?
james rock @ 14:
and in the eyes of the world, this makes ALL Americans criminals.
Time for this lame leader of the House to put Impeachment BACK ON THE TABLE.
New light has been raised, and issues are coming to the forefront that poor, ignorant little nancy didn't know about when she promised to be his bitch.
The whole country bares the stench of this administration. Shame on us.
jonathan turley is essentially begging for the icc to step in and restore the rule of law in the united states . . . sadly, i know how he feels
i wonder if u.s. citizens would have standing to request an icc investigation, especially since our tax dollars and our military are being used to commit war crimes, and our elected representatives are refusing to stop it
Yeah, well be that as it may, who's going to prosecute them?
There are only legal consequences when those consequences are actually enforced.
Bush thinks he's divinely inspired and above the law. Congress is just doing it's "patriotic" duty and covering for him. The only real patriot doing the people's work is Dennis Kucinich.
Yellow Cake is for Twinkies @ 18:
this is a no brainer . . . why hasn't george bush been stopped? is there no federal prosecutor out there who is willing to stand up for the rule of law?
innocent bystander @ 25:
Federal prosecutors are the DOJ and who has the DOJ in his pocket, Bush.
is any one else getting sick and tired of watching crime after crime being committed by our "officials" but not a single one of them being carted off to jail?
did i fall asleep and wake up in some fuc*ed up dimension where black is white and bad is good?
james rock @ 17:
At the moment no one, though the US has done an incredible job of isolating itself internationally, and making it's people the most hated in the world so they will (hopefully) travel less now, once the economy falls over completely no one will have to stop them as they will be too busy in fighting. The current political polarisation taken to a violent level. Then many will end up in the FEMA camps and the fascism that has taken over will come to full fruition, and to think the US did this to themselves, well done, mission accomplished.
Diane @ 12:
Hence the defence of any criticism of the US, soundly followed by "we're #1 ra ra ra ra" ... as with the typical US brain washing crap that everyone buys into so hard.
CoIntelPro for Pronktastic Democratic Victory Over SCLM, DIEBOLD, ESS and SEQUOIA! @ 1:
I think it did a while ago, though this wont make any difference in the US I dare say.
BennyP @ 15:
Optimist.
To James Rock,
It all comes back to the Golden Rule, he who has the gold makes the rules. Our politicians are so out of touch with us that they only see the world from their perch at the 1% versus the other 99% of us who actually have to suffer their decisions. So for that top 1% of our population, things couldn't be better, and no one at all is going to hold them liable or accountable for a damn thing (for example, FISA Telecomm Immunity).
This is why our politicians aren't really too concerned about changing things or moving with any sort of haste to avert or correct our failing economy, disastrous foreign policy, bankrupt domestic policy, or anything else, save for when it directly affects them and their fellow 1%-ers (for example, the mortgage bailouts).
Unfortunately, the bottom 99% of us are so horribly uncoordinated and divided due to the actions and manipulations of the 1%-ers that we will never correct the situation we have for ourselves and things will only continue to get worse until we 99%-ers are reduced from wage-slaves to actual slaves.
God bless America!
We all know what our wonderful Democratic leadership will do with this information!
dadams @ 21:
exactly . . . i have opposed the iraq war since bush first began to babble about it, but i know that i have blood on my hands, because i clearly done everything i could to intervene
yes, i have hit the pavement in protest, and yes, i have written dozens of letters to government officials, but i have continued to pay my taxes and submit to the authority of a criminal government . . . there is no difference between me and the average german citizen during hitler's rule
this situation calls for civil disobedience on a massive scale . . . anything less is acquiescence
The Bush Administration's actions have violated the precedents laid down at Tokyo and Nuremberg. It's a sad thing indeed when a 21st Century state behaves like the Nazi and Imperial Japanese barbarians. The fact that we in the US are guilty of the very things we hung others for implies that we ourselves are not as pure as the 1945 tribunals seemed to say. And, as for me, I am deeply ashamed that Americans should have acted like the barbarian hordes of Hitler and Tojo. What have we become?
Does anyone know where I can get trascripts for the Turley interview. There was a lot in there, and I wanted to quote some of it in my next posting.
Ron @ 27:
i realize that they are d.o.j. . . . i just cannot believe that there isn't one federal prosecutor out there who believes in the rule of law . . . heck, aren't they supposed to be jesus freaks? what about the 10 freakin' commandments?
This Red Cross report is meaningless because our American government has completed lost its way. Bush and his cronies are war criminals, no doubt, and Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and their Congressional lackies are accomplices after (if not before) the fact.
And who's going to do anything about it? Are we all gonna hold hands and sing Kumbayah and hope things get better? Are we going to write emails to our representatives--the same ones who keep funding Bush's crimes and refusing to prosecute him? Are we going to keep posting comments on blogs and deluding ourselves that it matters?
When was the last time you read the Declaration of Independence? I did so on July 4th (I guess I'm a nerd-patriot), and it's amazing how well it describes the current crimes and abuses of this government. Not only Bush, but the entire federal government is guilty of most of the abuses listed in the Declaration. But that document, lovely as it was/is, was only a document. It took a WAR OF REBELLION to actually end King George's abuses.
And Americans will never again rise up in arms. I'd bet good money on it.
Face it, folks--America the Beautiful is dead. Gone. Our grand ideals, as detailed in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, have been thrown out the window. What we have now is the corpse of America in a vegetative state.
innocent bystander @ 33:
i clearly have not done everything . . .
innocent bystander @ 23:
Can someone start a website where us "whiners" can sign a petition to the International Criminal Court demanding that they take action against Bush and Cheney. We'll need a page for US citizens and another for people from other countries. Even if it doesn't work it will be something Chimpy can use in his library.
to the people who run C&L:
is there a reason you show us these daily crimes committed by our officials other than to have us rage in anger?
its more than obvious that NOTHING will ever change ..so why do you continue to post these crimes?
to anger us?
to sadden us?
to show us how fuc*ed up our country is ?
Yellow Cake is for Twinkies @ 18:
Not just under the Federal Law, these crimes of Bush's Administration were what the Axis leaders were hung for. What happened in the US that in 60-odd years we could go from looking at waterboarding as something authoritarian barbarians did, to becoming those authoritarian barbarians by committing their acts?
innocent bystander @ 36:
You forgot the 11th commandment.
Thou shall keep the paychecks coming in, and keep the ins benefits.
"yes, i have hit the pavement in protest, and yes, i have written dozens of letters to government officials, but i have continued to pay my taxes and submit to the authority of a criminal government . . . there is no difference between me and the average german citizen during hitler’s rule
this situation calls for civil disobedience on a massive scale . . . anything less is acquiescence"
We probably could just stop paying taxes on a massive scale, but like I said before, I doubt we're coordinated enough. But I will tell you, as a former IRS employee, if even a few million of us stopped paying taxes, it would cause significant havoc and the IRS doesn't have the resources to come after that many tax protesters.
Truth be told, our taxes don't really go to pay for government anyway, it goes to pay interest on the debt. Our government is bought on credit through the central banks. We stop paying taxes, then interests is no longer paid, then the central banks will refuse to lend more credit by not being able to sell enough treasury debt to foreign countries to make their reserves. Unfortunately, the value of the dollar would plummet to a little better than gravel, but maybe thats the sort of wake up call this country really needs?
On the other hand, like Hitler's Germany, some dictator demagogue could come along and unify the huddled masses and make the situation even worse than it is now.
But that's the gamble you take when you're making history...
Paul B. @ 37:
What grand ideals? In case you didn't realize, the author of the Declaration could write with a straight face that "all men are equal" while at the same time owning dark-skinned men and women as property.
The Constitution was also imperfect as well, in that it sanctioned the peculiar institution (until the 13th Amendment was passed, that is) and denied the vote to women and blacks and denied citizenship to the aborigines. The Founders were not the hagiographed people we pretend they were.
James @ 43:
Meh, Hitler is overblown in terms of his political effectiveness. Even with the entire apparatus of the Reich behind him prior to the Enabling Act he couldn't get a majority vote. Hitler got a string of luck that says something bad about the higher power, if it exists, in this world. A Hitler demagogue would require triple the luck in a nation the size of the US, as well.
Paul B. @ 37:
I wrote this last year and still post a link quite often. You have my permission to post the link anytime you like.
Saint Augustine @ 39:
i'm gonna research this . . . the question really remains whether we have legal standing . . . we could get millions of signatures, but if no one has standing, it won't mean a thing to the icc
"heck, aren’t they supposed to be jesus freaks? what about the 10 freakin’ commandments?"
HA! Most of these hypocrites can't even list them off. They probably think they are:
1. Thou shalt always vote Republican
2. Thou shalt spit on those less fortunate than yourself
3. Thou shalt not question thy government
4. Thou shalt have no need of a Constitution, just the Bible
5. Thou shalt oppose judicial activism when liberals do it
6. Thou shalt use fear-mongering and appeals to emotion
7. Thou shalt not support government spending, unless it is a Republican policy
8. Thou shalt support all Republican created wars
9. Thou shalt oppose abortion and open homosexuality (but it's ok if no one finds out)
10. Thou shalt not consider the idea that being pro-life and pro-war are somehow contradictory...
I think that about sums it up.
SC @ 25:
Don't forget Bernie Sanders and also possibly Russ Feingold. Overall, the good members of Congress are precious few. You may be able to count them all with one hand and still have fingers left over. How sad is that?
Ron @ 46:
Sorry, forgot the link.
http://myfightfordemocracy.blogspot.com/2007/07/new-declaration-of-indep...
James @ 43:
i think that a massive work stoppage would be effective . . . the corporations might learn that george bush is not in their best interest
James @ 43:
I think you may be on to something .. a wake up call ....not enough people are hurting enough right now. Give it a few more months. It won't be pretty.
Thank you Rachel.
Pinochet, Misolovic, Mladic and others were
haulded off to the Hague or are still being persued
or their lives are being made very painful.
"Don’t forget Bernie Sanders and also possibly Russ Feingold. Overall, the good members of Congress are precious few. You may be able to count them all with one hand and still have fingers left over. How sad is that?"
I realize this is likely a left-leaning site, but I think we should include Ron Paul in that pantheon as well.
How can we not pay our taxes, when the vast majority of people pay theirs in the form of payroll taxes?
James @ 54:
Sorry, nut cases needn't apply.
James @ 48:
Heh, the GOP considers the 10 commandments to be the basis of law in this nation, and as a Christian I can explain which ones are and which ones aren't:
1) Thou shalt have no other gods before Yahweh-Not applicable to the US under Article VI and Amendment I.
2) No idols-What exactly makes the worship of 10 commandment monuments..um...not idol-worship? Stupid Fundie heathens.
3) Do not misuse the name of Yahweh-again, Article VI and Amendment I.
4) Observe the Sabbath-Rabbinic law states the Sabbath is Saturday, so all would-be Rabbinical Christians, become Seventh-day Adventists.
5) Honor your parents-1) Child abuse and the abuses that commandment can cause, and 2) Putting people in nursing homes to rot hardly counts as honoring them, IMHO.
6) Don't murder-No difference, really between war and murder, save one is a one-on-one deal, the other involves massed numbers.
7) No adultery-Larry Craig, David Vitter, Jimmy Bakker. Nuff said.
8) No stealing-Broken by every government since the days of Sumer and Norte Chico.
9) Don't lie-Bushes I and II and Clinton, anyone?
10) No coveting-Coveting is the basis of capitalism. Crusade against the capitalistic heathens!
The 10 commandments don't work in a modern-day capitalistic society, they require some sort of socialism to work.
Red @ 55:
Easy, you go into your HR office and file a new W-4 and mark 9 exemptions. That's the most you can mark down without raising a red-flag with the IRS or your employer requiring proof. I do it all the time when I want to be sure I pay zero taxes. This will zero out both your federal taxes and state taxes. The only thing it won't zero out is FICA taxes.
The only way to get out of that is to be self-employed or an employee of a church. Otherwise, so long as you have a SS card, you HAVE to pay that... which I never agreed with. If I ever have a kid, he/she will NOT get a SS card.
All the newspaper in major cities are not own by that city. I think if I were to protest that the news media would be the first issue to take on. The free press was our implied forth branch of govt. The constitution states that the free press shall not be restricted, and for that reason to protect the rights of the people. I would go after anyone who advertise in the corporate media. Call them up and tell them that if they support the media, that you would not shop there. Stop taking the paper would do nothing, because they are giving it away for free. It's the advertisement is where the money is. I think the first road to freedom would be to end corporate sponsor media.
James @ 54:
Ron Paul is an old school Conservative isolationist who is steadfastly against any form of international law being applied to the US.
Jo @ 56:
Well, I've heard people claim the same of Kucinich... And yet I still support him on principle even if I don't support him politically. I just admire politicians that actually stick to their principles. I realize that make them nut cases compared to the majority that vote for whatever the corporations pay them money to support.
Unfortunately, when the corporations finally run out the Feingold's, the Sanders', the Kucinich's, and even the Paul's, you'll wish they were still around...
Snowball @ 60:
True to a certain extent, BUT he does support a strict reading of the Constitution, which means he is an ally in the fight to restore the Constitution versus criminals like Bush and company.
An enemy of our enemy is our friend. You need the Ron Paul's and their supporters in this fight, assuming that impeachment actually goes anywhere so long as Queen Pelosi sits on it.
Exhibit A for the prosecution of the warmongering war profiteering Bush regime.
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/06272008/watch3.html
General_Rennenkampf @ 44:
"General _ R"
Good point .
And you should add that the Founders were rich and trying to protect
their own interets.
Like , Who in that day and age could afford to go to Philadelphia to debate
the Fedarlist and Non Federalist points of view.
To my dorky cousins who love Bush and argue the "ticking time bomb defense," made popular by FOX`S 24,I say,"we`re better than that." I`m above the torture mentality,and I`ll fight to protect anyone in the world who is suffering that kind of treatment.
as far as i can tell, a u.s. citizen has no standing before the icc . . . the icc only has jurisdiction over crimes committed in the territories of ratifying states and over crimes committed anywhere by nationals of ratifying states -- the u.s. is not a ratifying state, nor is iraq . . . a country can choose to accept the court's jurisdiction in particular cases, but we'd be talking about congress taking action against george bush . . . hah!
No American will be prosecuted for war crimes until we have an Attorney General who respects the law. this means we need to elect a president who is willing to appoint the right AG... AND a congress who will be willing to approve such appointment. IF these things happen in our lifetimes... I imagine that BOTH Bush and Cheney will become permenant residents of some South American dictatorship... or maybe move in With Michael Jackson in Dubai.
innocent bystander @ 47:
Someone put a site up where we can sign up anyway, maybe a couple millions signatures will wake up some of our"represenatives" in the House and Senate. Perhaps there are some people of standing who would sign, like judges or govenors.
Will This Be The One That Will Tear Bush's Defense To Shreds
First let me note how validated I felt to hear University Law Professor Jonathan Turley say Bush has been using a "lets debate" tactic to get away with crimes. Until now, I felt like my claims that Bush used this as a defense fell into a black whole. I have written about this many times, and I never got any takers to process my concerns for this dynamic that seemed so obvious. Thank you very much Professor Turley.
Nancy Pelosi must reconsider impeaching, and I do hate to say his name in this way, President Bush. In fact, just as the Florida and Michigan primary voters put it, no one person or committee should be allowed to take something away from the voting public. My stomach turned when it was reported that a Democratic committee took a state's right to vote away and my stomach still turns when I hear the Democratic leaders say impeachment is off the table. They have no right to speak for the American people on this scale.
When all is said and counted, our murderous president is responsible for well over a million deaths. Dam the torture issue because we should be talking about genocide charges. I can say this with 100% sense of righteousness afforded those who have witnessed a crime and saw who did it.
Polosi, along with many key officials, suffer from collective denial. In spite of the obvious nature of Bush's crime, it is treated like like something less then what it truly is. How is that for denial? Somebody should awaken Polosi and her key officials. This is not a dream, nightmare or an exercise in how much patience does it take to forgive a genocide. This was real, its still real, and if it were left up to Bush or McSame, it would be real for a long time to come.
Today, I want impeachment rights put back on the same got-dam table Polosi took them off of. One of our first lessons in life is: You don't take things that don't belong to you.
Joseph
Oh nothing to worry about - Harry and Nancy will fast track immunity legislation so the dear GOPatriots can continue to save America by stabbing it to death.
The who fact that Pelosi has the House by the balls I think is one of the main reasons the Founders didn't want parties in place. If there weren't two parties, or any parties, she wouldn't have nearly the level of control she does over the House.
Perhaps committee chairs should be elected by the majority party like the Speaker is, so that the Speaker can't threaten to take away chairmanships if they don't do what she wants. Or the Speaker can decide who goes on what committees, but then those committees elect their Chair and Ranking Member?
Ruthless People @ 63:
It was about the oil, no doubt but it was also done for Israel's paranoia of Saddam in the guise of democratizing the ME. That's a good clip by Moyers, real clear.
Jo @ 56:
with all the youtube videos of ron paul speakin i cant believe theres still people out there who call this man a "nut case"
SCHRODINGER'S CAT @ 64:
Pretty much, yes. The Founders were rich, privileged white men who wanted to stay rich, privileged white men. It's worth noting for all Jefferson's praise of rebellion, Shay's Rebellion made him shit his pants and join everyone else at the Constitutional Convention. Not too fond of the masses, those Founders. At least the French Revolutionaries did some good things for the average Joe'n'Jane on the streets.
"with all the youtube videos of ron paul speakin i cant believe theres still people out there who call this man a 'nut case'"
Just goes to show just how influential the Media can be, that, and people who should know better are listening to the establishment Republicans.
It's amazing how many Democrats don't believe anything the Republicans say EXCEPT when they say that Rep. Soandso is a nut case. And then the media helps to spread that around too.
YES, the man has unconventional ideas which are largely unworkable in our current political climate where people on both the left AND the right expect the government to take care of them. However, perhaps in time, Americans may once again support the idea of self-sufficiency and personal responsibility when they see how much Nanny-stateism can bankrupt a nation that also tries to be the policeman of the world.
The only reason the Nanny State works in Canada, England, Australia, or Europe is because they don't have a bloated and wasteful defense budget like we do. So if more Paulians got into government and at least cut back on the wasteful spending on Defense, then maybe we could increase spending on other more important domestic programs.
Obviously, while BushCo. is in office no justice can be really be started. But, maybe after the election of democrats in a marked majority Bush and his cronies can be held to account for their crimes. Unfortunately, I fear nothing will be done which will continue unprovoked wars and atrocities by future presidents.
So.....what's going to be done about it?
Meanwhile, the McCain-stream-media overdoses on a private aside by Jesse Jackson.
BillD @ 77:
Looking at the track record for charging people in powerful nations with crimes (looking at Soviets and Americans from the Cold War that were both equally happy to invade poor places and burn and loot them) I'd say two things: jack and shit, and jack just left town.
..on a previous item about the pardons Bush (41) made for the Iran-Conta affair.
I now wonder if the issue of beginning criminal prosecutions and issuing indictments are being delayed until Bush is out of town. That way Bush can't issue any pardons or clemency or any other executive orders granting retroactive immunity to his minions. If Congress waits until Bush is gone (and assuming the statute of limitations are still in force), they can still indict everybody else and get convictions.
Let's not get hasty too early here. We've still got more evidence to gather.
TF-MA @ 70:
Well put.Shortly after"Mission Accomplished,"Molly Ivins wrote a column in which she described Bush`s way of saving the Iraqis by killing them.Your post reminds me of this great,fearless woman`s words.
Dutchguy @ 4:
In the minds of thinking people, the mere fact that bush signed this into law is admission of his guilt. This law will mean nothing if the party in charge doesn't want to inforce it.
"I now wonder if the issue of beginning criminal prosecutions and issuing indictments are being delayed until Bush is out of town. That way Bush can’t issue any pardons or clemency or any other executive orders granting retroactive immunity to his minions. If Congress waits until Bush is gone (and assuming the statute of limitations are still in force), they can still indict everybody else and get convictions."
HA! Like you think any of this would really stop him considering his track record? Hell, Bush could probably pardon himself and all his friends before he leaves office anticipating that the next Congress/President might look into some of these things and get away with it. Why? Because they will let him. He already created the doctrine of pre-emptive war, pre-emptive pardons (even of himself) aren't that far out of the question.
Filthy Harry @ 81:
hate to burst your bubble, but george bush is such a [Deleted-Sitemonitor]
the sad fact of the matter is that, as a sociopath, there ain't a whole lot that you could do to the man that would have any, real emotional impact upon him
Joe H. @ 80:
seems to me, this is an argument for impeachment . . . an impeached president can't pardon anyone
james rock @ 73:
Although many representatives in government understand the ruthless control the privately owned Federal Reserve has over government, Ron Paul is one of the only ones who has the balls to talk about it.
The people who regard this man as a nut case, are those who are terribly ignorant of the truth or those who will lose vast amounts of dirty corporate money for future elections.
ConcernedCanuck @ 5:
The Red Cross works privately so that it can ensure that it continues to have access to the prisoners and the prisons where injustices can be carried out. They will go public, in only extreme cases where they have been unable to work with the guilty parties to correct injustices. The ICRC released a very public indictment of the Government in Myanmar only a year ago, because they were no longer being allowed in to carry out their mission.
The American Red Cross is a completely separate entity from the International Committee, and the International Committee is the only organization in the world given access to these prisons because they keep their information confidential except in the most extreme situations. If they did not do that, then the humanitarian aid they do deliver would not be possible.
Screw impeachment, bring out da rope!
And make sure all the bushies out there get a first row seat. Tee hee.
Okay, we've probably known about this for a while, whose going to anything about it? A spineless Congress? An apathetic American public? Some general with four stars on his lapel who took an oath to preserve and protect the Constitution? Seems no one has the balls to do a damn thing about the moron in chief when it comes to breaking international law or committing treasonable offenses. we have truly becom e the land of the pathetic and the financially bankrupt.
War Crimes? How about Mass Murder?
Check out Vincent Bugliosi's book: The Prosecution of George Bush for Murder
Here are links to him talking about the book & its content.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3xP79ReW8bk Part 1
http://youtube.com/watch?v=THlq3dOeIHI&feature=related Part 2
http://youtube.com/watch?v=EcASQ5Wij24&feature=related Part 3
http://youtube.com/watch?v=-Lo0n6pe6bk&feature=related Part 4
http://youtube.com/watch?v=HI4mtKQoFvU&feature=related Part 5
http://youtube.com/watch?v=bXPa9phB6ag&feature=related Part 6
So do almost all independent thinking Americans. That doesn't mean any of these escapees from an insane asylum will be tried for war crimes.
Wait, I thought we already convicted the "Few Bad Apple" soldiers responsible for all this?!?
ConcernedCanuck @ 5:
that's a different red cross. the american red cross actually takes its orders from homeland sec. that's why relief never went to the people of NOLa. that and their post-9/11 antics are why they will never see another dollar from me.
DavidKris @ 92:
great snark
lady @ 87:
thanks, that was better'n mine.
V for Vonnegut @ 90:
Bush and his gang of thugs are responsible for the deaths of more Iraqis than Saddam Hussein was....and Saddam didn't kill an additional 4000 American service members too boot. Saddam was brought to justice now bring Bush and Cheney to justice for their war crimes and war protiteering. It's the only way to win back the respect of the world and we would get it instantaneously.
V for Vonnegut @ 90:
I loved the 3:00 mark on part 2 where he calls out the wingnuts and the chickenhawks.
V for Vonnegut @ 90:
6:45 mark of part 3 is heart breaking.
Can you believe this is even on tv...this is awesome. Now the only thing left is 9/11. The public is slowly starting to see reality...I hope it moves faster.
General_Rennenkampf @ 41:
Well, that's not entirely true either..the U.S. armed forces have been waterboarding muslims since the early 1900's...the technique started in the Philippines, and has gone through several variations, but basic idea has been being used for over 100 years
james rock @ 14:
If everyone thinks like you then you'll be right. There is something to be said about trying, and quite another thing to be said about your defeatist remarks. Stop being a baby won't you?
Does anybody here wonder why the Bush family purchased 80 thousand acres of land in Paraguay?
Just in case, baby.
So what? We've known this for a while. Now it's the red cross. So what? Is George going to be impeached? Will he be arrested? Prosecuted?
We'll see more and more of the same evidence and still none of these scumbags will ever pay... ever.
SC @ 25:
Don't forget Russ Feingold & Chris Dodd.
The rest of the world views the Bush admin as war criminals. They will have to be held to account for their crimes.
If Congress won't then the rest of the world will.
But will a Pres. Obama shield Bush and other from prosecution. Will we as a nation protect war criminals?
James @ 48:
That's beautiful!
CoIntelPro for Pronktastic Democratic Victory Over SCLM, DIEBOLD, ESS and SEQUOIA! @ 93:
Lets get one things straight, I will never condone the actions of the bush administration here or around the world. But my support stays with the American Red Cross and the ICRC and here is why.
You complain that the American Red Cross takes it's orders from homeland security and the government. That is not true. You site the mistakes made in New Orleans and 9-11. And you are right, there were some very big mistakes made, but one is largely a result of the other when it comes to funding disaster relief. The American Red Cross provides free of charge disaster relief to victims of everything from single family fires to natural disaster. When large disasters, such as 9-11 happen it is next to impossible to turn the generosity of the American People off. The organization is inundated with money and before 9-11 those donations went into the Disaster Relief Fund and where used where they were needed when they where needed to serve the American People best. Now, as a result of 9-11 those donations are all earmarked by you the donor, and that intent is honored to the last penny. Donor intent is very much a two sided coin. It means that there is often an outpouring of support when there is a large disaster because the American people are very generous in times of need, but to get people to donate to the general relief fund when there is no "active disaster" is a difficult thing to do. Katrina, there really are no excuses for that, rest assured that the American Red Cross did not take orders from anyone, but it did have to work with other organizations, because that disaster was too large for any one organizations, outside of the government, to handle. As for the ARC, there used to be a time when the money was there and waiting for when the unthinkable happened, but 9-11 changed the country, the world, and the way the ARC does business.
War Pigs! Let the trials begin!
the abuse constituted war crimes, placing the highest officials in the U.S. government in jeopardy of being prosecuted.
Well, they might be "in jeopardy of being prosecuted" if only there were someone with the stones to actually make a go at doing the prosecution.
So far, I don't see anyone with any real power stepping up to the plate out there. Kucinich has good intentions, but is anybody with any real power in the matter listening? The Bushies have done a pretty good job of stacking the deck in their own favor up until now.
Never too late for ACCOUNTABILITY
Nazis responsible for the deaths of millions held ACCOUNTABLE years after they committed those crimes , Pinochet was held accountable years after his crimes. There is still time to hold the Bush administration criminals ACCOUNTABLE FOR WAR CRIMES.
oh but impeachment is off the table, the world sadly will need to march the Washington's steps like we did to Hitler in Berlin before justice is carried out.
james rock @ 17:
calibpatriot @ 113:
If there ever has been criminals in this country deserving criminal prosecution they have to be Bush, Cheney, Rove, Rice and the rest of the Bush/Cheney crime family. Tragically, our justice and political systems have become so completely corrupted that we do not have a viable mechanism for bringing them to justice.
Well yeah they're guilty of war crimes. We all know that.
We know the earth revolves around the sun, too.
It's not like there's anything anyone can do about it in either case.
Nothing will come of this report when all we do is surf the internet and watch reality TV.
RIP America.
Every official that is in on conspiracy for milking our children into bonadage are retreating to the tropical islands and some are buying properties in Elsalvador, but you can bet your bottom dollar they are not booking return flights. Check to see if your police chief is in town, go on and then check where the governor is.
Difference between Nazi Germany and our corrupt government, the world was united militarily against the Nazi, but today the world is united against us verbally. They shout out against us at the top of their lungs for a full 5 minutes just before their version of American Idol, SuperStar, starts it's new season.
What does a soldier do when they abandoned their wreck of a vehicle, destroy it's equipment so it wont be used against them. That's what's happening to America! Government officials are purposely destroying America so she can't retaliate against them, and if officials can't run this country like a dictatorship, they'll send us to the stone ages, while remaining in control from a tropical paradise.
We're so preoccupied with American Idol and our Play Stations... we had it coming!
I hope g.walker b. ( the texas ranger ) stays in office till his term is over , because Darth is truly a monster .
Truth is treason ,
In the empire of lies .
Ron Paul
Please, let the tribunal begin! If Nancy Pelosi is too guilty to call for impeachment with undeniably valid charges for this let an international war crimes trial also charge her with inaction! Pelosi, your time is almost up too. God damn do nothing, out of touch and lawless congress. Just mirrors now of the executive (we can do anything!) branch. I rate with an A(bomb) for Washington's complete and utter contempt for the laws of the land.
When lives are on the line, 'mistakes' are not made.
A mistake is wearing a red tie instead of a blue one.
The word 'mistake' is commonly used to hide that either no one cared to inform themselves, knew what they were doing but ignored the fact they were doing something wrong or just did not care.
And when it comes down to the fact that people might get injured or killed, if you are in any way involved, you better know damn sure what you are doing and then you are held 100% responsible.
Just stop playing like this is Kindergarden or something. Grown people deciding about life or death have no room to guess or presume or hope.
Again this is the BS mentality of letting the offender become the victim.
Jeez, stop acting like puppets and start holding people responsible for what they do.
If they do not want to be held responsible then they should not have signed up for the job.
Stop acting like the Government is made out of idiots that simply cannot help themselves from making mistakes.
If your surgeon screws up during a surgery, you can take his rear end to court and no amount of 'well the poor guy was in a lot of stress.'.
If that won't fly there then it should never fly.
Paul B. @ 37:
I already have.
Paul B. @ 37:
That happened ages ago; a rotting putrid corpse at that. You allowed greed and short sightedness to rule and embraced it with ever 80% off Wallmart sale driven to in a poorly US built SUV.
Chickens, home & roost.
General_Rennenkampf @ 34:
Become ?
Imperialistic rapists, murders and thieves, incredulous hateful liars.
Not only the laughing stock of the world, but the most hated nation on the planet.
You're country was lost ages ago, though to let things get to this state is ridiculous and nothing but a reflection of the apathy and ignorance of the population.
I would only find the administration guilty, but the vast majority of the people.
This is what the Bushites have turned the "land of the free" into. Sad, just sad...
Login or Register to post comments.