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We heard from Marcy that John McCain had a decent op-ed today in the Washington Post, denouncing torture and laying out the facts on the role of torture. He affirmed that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed lied under torture about key facts related to the courier which harbored bin Laden, and he also provided more information on subsequent intelligence from other sources, none of which, he says, was gained through torture.
But he didn’t stop there. McCain took to the Senate floor and spoke for 20 minutes on the same subject today. He criticized sharply the stance that torture yields good intelligence, and added that it harms our effort in both counter-terrorism and the greater Muslim world.
The most important part of the op-ed was the acknowledgement that the Arab uprising, not bin Laden, is the most important world-historical event we have to get right at this time.
Though it took a decade to find bin Laden, there is one consolation for his long evasion of justice: He lived long enough to witness what some are calling the Arab Spring, the complete repudiation of his violent ideology.
As we debate how the United States can best influence the course of the Arab Spring, can’t we all agree that the most obvious thing we can do is stand as an example of a nation that holds an individual’s human rights as superior to the will of the majority or the wishes of government? Individuals might forfeit their life as punishment for breaking laws, but even then, as recognized in our Constitution’s prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment, they are still entitled to respect for their basic human dignity, even if they have denied that respect to others.
All of these arguments have the force of right, but they are beside the most important point. Ultimately, this is more than a utilitarian debate. This is a moral debate. It is about who we are.
I don’t know that we are holding to those ideals, or that we ever have. But if there was a place for putting those values into action, it’s right now in that part of the world. Syria and Yemen are facing major setbacks and brutal repression. The absolute least we can do is set an example, and change the paradigm of propping up dictators to extract natural resources and feed our oil addiction. I don’t think this was all McCain had in mind, but renouncing torture is a building block.
The problem is that McCain wants to indemnify those who tortured and those who authorized it from any prosecution or accountability. This makes a mockery of those ideals he professes, which after all include the rule of law.
I suppose I’ll take what I can get here from McCain, especially as it’s not like there’s anyone in Washington who’s moving on prosecutions. What’s more, this really debilitates the revival of torture from the Bush Administration rejects. McCain is the ranking Republican on the Armed Services Committee. He’s going to lead the questioning of Leon Panetta when he has a confirmation hearing for Defense Secretary. The lack of consensus from Republicans at the highest levels will make it very hard for them to make an issue out of it in the hearings.
McCain hasn’t done a lot of noble things over the past several years, but at least he looked to his own experience and could state unequivocally that torture is not just unhelpful, but simply wrong.
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Well, our regime in Bahrain is torturing medical workers.
http://aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2011/05/2011512111835943173.html
Next week President Obama will give another address to the “Muslim world,” his second (or third, if you count Indonesia), and he’ll say pretty much what he said in Cairo and the result will be pretty much the same: no change in U.S. policy toward the region.
Syria is certainly the USraeli Demcratic/Neocon Bipartisan Governments target, but Bahrain is killing more and is much more brutal towards it’s civilian population.
(via Angry Arab News Service )
800 Libya deaths in the sea: “250 people died in a shipwreck at the beginning of April, and two boats with 480 people between them have simply vanished,” and 70 died of thirst floating in the ocean, We can count these under NATO responsibility, and at least several hundred slaughtered by rebels, which can also be counted as a NATO responsibility.
So, what? Was this Johnny-boy’s little mea culpa moment to make himself sleep better at night? What? He’ll do a little truth telling but then run away from it at the same time?
Ya know, I think I’d prefer McCain to just STFU if he’s not going to really do the heavy lifting and call a spade, a spade. then again, McCain waffling and running away from the big boyz is nothing new. So much for how “heroic” McCain is.
Once a whore, always a whore – eh, Johnny-boy?
somehow this is Joe Lieberman’s fault.
Torture /Murder Johnnie Mac wants to pardon murderers before the trials ?
In America home of the brave where no man is above the law ?
Why don’t they throw themselves to the mercy of the court these “Law and Order “types?
It just seems a little sad that the best attention we can get for this basic point of human decency has to come from a warmongering septagenarian with borderline personality disorder and the overall integrity of a Japanese nuclear plant.
Looking at your title, David, I wonder if it really does put the brakes on torture. I think that some members of Congress really enjoy the idea – sort if like looking at a slasher movie. Some people just love violence as long as they are not involved.
I sincerely doubt that McCain’s commentary does much of anything.
My other guess is that this is McCain’s way of giving the PTB the finger for not inviting him onto last Sunday’s Talking Heads Shows, where, as we know, the ratio was 6:1 of “Republicans” invited on to discuss how “Democratic” Potus Obama “got” ObL. It was a whore-fest of rightwingers circle-jerking about how great torture is and how torture & W & Cheney actually really and truly “won” and they were solely respon for the killing of ObL.
I think Johnny Mac is mightily pissed off that he couldn’t strut and preen amidst the giant Sunday ego-vanity shows… so this’ll show ‘em who’s boss!!!
McC’s main goal in life is to stay in the spotlight. He will literally do anything for that. Besides, he always forgets what he has said last week and then contradicts himself.
True, and it’s one of the numerous reasons why McCain, the Media Whore, really loathed his running mate, Palin, the other Media Whore.
It was kinda funny to watch Mac being all pissed off at Palin getting more attention than he did.
Torture in North Africa and Middle East according to the 2010 U.S. State Department Human Rights Reports.
(excerpts, countries A through I only)
Algeria
The law prohibits such practices; however, NGO and local human rights activists reported that government officials sometimes employed abusive treatment to obtain confessions. Government agents can face prison sentences of between 10 and 20 years for committing such acts, and some individuals were tried and convicted in 2008. Nonetheless, impunity remained a problem.
Bahrain
The constitution prohibits such practices; however, there were multiple allegations during the year that security forces employed them. On February 8, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a report asserting that “since the end of 2007, officials have repeatedly resorted to torture for the apparent purpose of securing confessions from security suspects.”
Egypt
Article 42 of the constitution prohibits the infliction of “physical or moral harm” upon persons who have been arrested or detained; however, the law fails to account for mental or psychological abuse, abuse against persons who have not been formally accused, or abuse occurring for reasons other than securing a confession. Police, security personnel, and prison guards often tortured and abused prisoners and detainees, sometimes in cases of detentions under the Emergency Law, which authorizes incommunicado detention indefinitely, subject to a judge’s ruling. The government rarely held security officials accountable, and officials often operated with impunity.
Iran
The constitution and law prohibit torture, but there were numerous credible reports that security forces and prison personnel tortured detainees and prisoners. A February 5 study by the UN special rapporteur on torture stated there were “credible” allegations that the country’s security forces committed politically motivated torture following demonstrations in 2009.
Iraq
The constitution expressly prohibits torture in all its forms under all circumstances, as well as cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. During the year there were documented instances of torture and other abuses by government agents and similar abuses by illegal armed groups. The government’s effectiveness in adhering to the rule of law in these circumstances faced obstacles from continuing large-scale violence, corruption, sectarian bias, and lack of civilian oversight and accountability, particularly in the security forces and detention facilities.
Israel and occupied territories
A 1999 High Court of Justice ruling held that, although torture and the application of physical or psychological pain are illegal, Israel Security Agency (ISA) interrogators may be exempt from criminal prosecution if they use such methods in extraordinary cases determined to involve an imminent threat, or “ticking bomb” scenario.
During the year nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) filed numerous complaints alleging that security forces tortured or abused Palestinian residents of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip (see annex).
It’s BS. McCain was one of the primary people implementing the 2006 Army Field Manual, putting adherence into it as part of the DTA, even as DoD (with Cambone in charge of the project) was significantly weakening the protections against abuse within it — all the while telling everyone they were doing the opposite. He has never spoken out against the torture allowed by its Appendix M.
The man is a pathological liar. Today he may say something you like. Tomorrow, it will be something else quite different.
I don’t need him as an ally. He is not an ally on ending torture. He is part of the problem.
Agree. Don’t take anything of value from anything McCain says or does. Amazingly enough, McCain may be even worse than Obama in having no value added from what he says. A waste of breath, imo.
Well he’s right about that. But he forgets to mention that the primary participants in this debate have no sense of morality. DC is like a fashion show for the blind when it comes to morality.
You know, I’m actually blown away. That was a good speech. Glad it’s a part of the record. He pulled a press redirect on this in a way the FDL crew never could (although you guys really are amazing for keeping on top of the subject). That is damn important in my book. Mukasey just dropped a 10 pound loaf in his shorts. What McCain lacks in purity he makes up for in clout. McCain’s speech is a part of the congressional record – Mukasey et. al. a part of the WaPo blog chatter. Win.
It never even occurred to me to consider him an ally. But he didn’t have do that speech or do the opEd, I don’t even see how it helps him. Hell, as long as he wants to take to the floor and say stuff like THAT … I say: go man go! Worry about what grandpa does tomorrow tomorrow.
Thinking about it, isn’t Mukasey is setting Panetta up for a dicey situation? With that Theissen response he basically calls McCain a liar for calling him a liar. With McCain sourcing a seemingly important portion of his information directly to Panetta …. there’s a potential confirmation hearing train wreck waiting to happen.
If asked now, I would prefer McCain had won the election. At least we would have a somewhat honest middle of the road person in charge and the democratic Congress would be keeping him in check. He really might have done some of the things that Obama had promised!
Its all water under the bridge now, just hope No One makes the same mistake, twice!
One could hope that
does not have the votes.
Ya, right, I need to go back and smoke my pipe.