"Yoo, Bybee, Cheney and Bush have never suffered the burden of a conscience"

By GottaLaff

I've said this before, but I have no problem being redundant when it comes to torture: These thugs should be in prison.

Via the L.A. Times letters to the editor, Yoo asked for it:

Letting them off solves nothing

Re “Cleared but not vindicated,” Editorial, Feb. 23

The last line in your editorial reads: "They may not be disbarred, but they are disgraced."

In order for anyone to feel disgraced, they must have a conscience. It's been painfully obvious -- for some time now -- that John C. Yoo, Jay S. Bybee, Dick Cheney and George W. Bush have never suffered the burden of a conscience.

What is disgraceful is that so many of the Bush administration's transgressions will remain not only unpunished but uninvestigated.

*****

The "torture memo" and the horrors that sprang from it have discredited America and American ideals. The damage to our national security will take a generation to repair and, meanwhile, puts our nation and our citizens abroad at great risk. Yoo and Bybee could not have done more damage had they been undercover agents in the employ of an arch foe such as, oh, Al Qaeda.

Hmmm. Hmmm. If only there was a way to wring a confession out of them . . .

Hmmm. Hmmm. Indeed.

Leahy To Hold Hearing On Free Pass To Yoo And Bybee

By GottaLaff

I was in tears yesterday when I heard the outrageous news about John Yoo and Jay Bybee wriggling out from under a prison sentence for their part in legalizing torture.

But there is good news. It comes from Senator Pat Leahy, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Commitee:

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing to examine the Office of Professional Responsibility Report on the Office of Legal Counsel, Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) announced today. The report was released to Congress today.

The hearing will be held Friday, February 26, at 10:00 a.m. Witnesses will be announced in the coming days, and the hearing will be webcast live online.

I will be watching.

One hearing won't do it, but maybe, possibly, hopefully it will open the door to much more... at the very least, disbarment.

More details here.

********

All my previous posts on this subject matter can be found here; That link includes one specific to only Fayiz al-Kandari's story here. Here are audio and video interviews with Lt. Col. Wingard, one by David Shuster, one by Ana Marie Cox, and more. My guest commentary at BuzzFlash is here.

Lt. Col. Barry Wingard is a military attorney who represents Fayiz Al-Kandari in the Military Commission process and in no way represents the opinions of his home state. When not on active duty, Colonel Wingard is a public defender in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

If you are inclined to help rectify these injustices: Twitterers, use the hashtag #FreeFayiz. We have organized a team to get these stories out. If you are interested in helping Fayiz out, e-mail me at The Political Carnival, address in sidebar to the right; or tweet me at @GottaLaff.

If you'd like to see other ways you can take action, go here and scroll down to the end of the article.

Then read Jane Mayer's book The Dark Side. You'll have a much greater understanding of why I post endlessly about this, and why I'm all over the CIA deception issues, too.

More of Fayiz's story here, at Answers.com.H/t: VNDNBRG

DOJ official reportedly clears torture memo authors Yoo and Bybee.

By GottaLaff

I'm sure I'll hear from die-hard Obama supporters about how anti-Obama I am (which is laughable if you read TPC regularly), but this, in a word, sucks:

Newsweek now reports that a senior DOJ official has essentially cleared the two men of misconduct in an upcoming office of Professional Responsibility report:

While the probe is sharply critical of the legal reasoning used to justify waterboarding and other “enhanced” interrogation techniques, NEWSWEEK has learned that a senior Justice official who did the final review of the report softened an earlier OPR finding. Previously, the report concluded that two key authors — Jay Bybee, now a federal appellate court judge, and John Yoo, now a law professor — violated their professional obligations as lawyers when they crafted a crucial 2002 memo approving the use of harsh tactics, say two Justice sources who asked for anonymity discussing an internal matter. But the reviewer, career veteran David Margolis, downgraded that assessment to say they showed “poor judgment,” say the sources. (Under department rules, poor judgment does not constitute professional misconduct.) The shift is significant: the original finding would have triggered a referral to state bar associations for potential disciplinary action — which, in Bybee’s case, could have led to an impeachment inquiry.

Emptywheel (Marcy Wheeler, who you can see here in Blunt, the Sequel), has more.

I'm heartbroken, angry, frustrated, baffled, you name it. But I pretty much expected this outcome. How depressing.

Apparently, Margolis didn't get "input" from A.G. Holder. Maybe he should have.

I simply don't understand sweeping the entire foundation for legalizing torture under the rug, as it obviously was in a Friday night dump (when it was released).

Don't even bother trying to talk me down. I'm way past that.

Conservatives Set To Block Dawn Johnsen’s Nomination

By GottaLaff

In a couple of recent posts, I've brought up Dawn Johnsen as someone who should get confirmed without any further delay. Didn't we just know that the Rushpublics would do their level best to block her? Why would they do that? This is why. It's not about her position on abortion, it's about her (perfectly appropriate) approach to justice and our legal system, meaning: They're terrified.

Well, well, well, guess which unsurprising move by the Rushpublics is about to cut the Democrats off at the knees:

Roll Call reports that conservatives look poised to successfully block the nomination of Dawn Johnsen to head the White House Office of Legal Counsel (OLC). Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) declared that his hands were tied without the assistance of a few Republican votes:

“Right now we’re finding out when to do that,” Reid said, responding to a question about the status of Indiana University law professor Dawn Johnsen’s nomination to the Justice post. “We need a couple Republican votes until we can get to 60.”

Three words: Senator Al Franken.

It’s unclear why 60 votes are needed to confirm Johnsen, considering her predecessor, Jay Bybee — who went on to authorize illegal torture — won easy confirmation in 2001 through a simple voice vote. Bybee’s successor, Jack Goldsmith, was also approved by a voice vote. Steven Bradbury served for three years as an acting OLC head, and so did not have to come up for a vote. Having a full — and filibuster-proof — Senate vote on Johnsen would be an unusual break with recent precedent. [...]

Johnsen is eminently qualified to head the OLC. She has been an outspoken critic of Bush’s torture and eavesdropping programs, argues persuasively for accountability for wrongdoing, and has written passionately in support of checks and balances and against executive branch power grabs. She is a strong progressive candidate who could restore the tainted OLC to a place of legal professionalism and pride. And, like the majority of Americans, Johnsen thinks abortions should be safe and legal in most cases.

Specter and Nelson can find little in Johnsen’s sterling record to substantively critique, and Reid shouldn’t let them stand in the way. Indeed, their opposition to her breaks their track record for supporting previous OLC heads like Bybee. Remember, when Bush nominated Bybee for a federal judgeship, Specter, Nelson, Cornyn, and Reid all voted to confirm him.

It's time for Paddy and me to invite Specter and Nelson to join Lindsey Graham in the woodshed. I'll supply the spiders.

H/t: Dr. President

VIDEO: Bybee could face impeachment as a result of DoJ report

By GottaLaff

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Light at the end of the proverbial tunnel:

After a four-year probe, the Department of Justice has finally come out with its report on the torture memos–and it seems like they won’t be recommending prosecuting the lawyers who helped write them. But Michael Isikoff, the veteran investigative correspondent for Newsweek — says the report will be a bombshell and could recommend the impeachment of Bush White House counsel Jay Bybee.

Good, good, and good. But here's the part that stood out to me last night, as I watched the Tee Vee Machine:

Additionally, Isikoff emphasized that the ethics division’s recommendation of no criminal charges isn’t decisive.

The “no criminal prosecutions headline that is getting a lot of attention tonight — I’m not sure that’s quite as significant as people think,” he said. “The office of professional responsibility is the ethics unit. It’s not the criminal division of the Justice Department. They don’t make decisions on criminal prosecutions and there’s an entire separate track of potential criminal investigations flowing from this as we reported this week in Newsweek an ongoing criminal investigation into the CIA destruction of tapes and e-mails in this report could well shed light for the criminal division so I don’t think this is by any means over yet.”

I haven't heard one peep from any of the punditiots about this. Even Rachel followed right up by going back to her frustration over the "slaps on the wrist" issue. That puzzled me. My ears perked right up after hearing Isikoff's comments as stated above. That glimmer of hope was what all I needed... for now.

VIDEO: Dear Chairman Conyers, Impeach Bybee. Love, John Podesta

By GottaLaff


(Watch the video all the way to the very last second. John Podesta was the head of Obama's transition team.)

Dear everyone:

Can we agree that torture is wrong, kills people, is ineffective, and illegal? Good. Now can we agree that when people break the law, they should be investigated and/or prosecuted? And that by ignoring the rule of law, a horrendous precedent is set?

And can we also agree that if the tables were turned, the Rushpublics would be looking back, not forward, as they did with President Clinton? And finally, can we agree that we shouldn't even have to ask these questions?

I trust that things will unfold the way they should. I am focusing primarily on the punditiots more than anyone... for now.

Dear Chairman Conyers,

I am writing to ask you to consider holding impeachment hearings against 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Jay Bybee, should he decide not to voluntarily resign.

As you are well aware, Judge Bybee is the only architect of the Bush administration’s torture program to currently hold public office.

A legal memorandum signed by Judge Bybee when he was the head of the Office of Legal Counsel and recently released by the Obama administration approved the use of cruel, inhuman, and degrading techniques, including waterboarding, slamming a detainee into a wall, depriving a detainee of sleep for up to eleven days at a time, and trapping a prisoner in a "confinement box" with insects in order to induce terror. The techniques endorsed by Judge Bybee’s memoranda violated U.S. law and our commitments under the United Nations Convention Against Torture.

On March 13, 2003, Judge Bybee was confirmed by a 74-19 vote in the Senate. During his Senate hearings, Mr. Bybee stonewalled the Judiciary Committee when asked about his role in national security matters. He said at the time, “As an attorney at the Department of Justice, I am obliged to keep confidential the legal advice that I provide to others in the executive branch." A number of Senators have now acknowledged that, had they known then what they now know, Judge Bybee would not have been confirmed.

Jay Bybee currently sits on the U.S. Court of Appeals, one level removed from the U.S. Supreme Court. He has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution. Yet, having issued opinions that violate the Constitution and concealed relevant aspects of his legal views and professional conduct from the Senate, Bybee has neither the legal nor moral authority to sit in judgment of others.

My organization, the Center for American Progress Action Fund, has collected signatures from approximately 20,000 Americans (see attached) who have expressed their deep-felt and sincere desire to see that Judge Bybee is held to account for authorizing torture. It is unacceptable to allow him to continue to serve in his current role. Judge Bybee should resign, but if he fails to do so, I urge you to begin impeachment proceedings against him.

Sincerely,

John Podesta
President and CEO, Center for American Progress Action Fund

I agree.

Sincerely,

Laffy

VIDEO: Debbie Wasserman Schultz won't rule out prosecuting Bush/Cheney

By GottaLaff

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is just fine with getting rid of Jay Bybee:

Wasserman Schultz also said she would not rule out prosecuting former President Bush or Vice President Cheney.

Nadler-- Impeach Torture Memo Author: "It was not an honest legal memo. It was an instruction manual on how to break the law."

By GottaLaff

The groundswell is groundswelling:

Rep. Jerry Nadler, a senior Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, called Monday for the impeachment of federal judge Jay Bybee, one of the principal authors of the torture memos released last week by the Obama administration.

"He ought to be impeached," Nadler said in an interview with the Huffington Post. "It was not an honest legal memo. It was an instruction manual on how to break the law. [...]

Nadler is meeting with Attorney General Eric Holder on Tuesday to argue that the release of the torture memos further buttresses a call he had made earlier for a special prosecutor on torture.

"Any special prosecutor on torture would have to look at the authors of those torture memos," said Nadler. "And certainly you have real grounds to impeach him once the special prosecutor took a good look at that. I think there ought to be an impeachment inquiry looked at in any event. Which should happen first, I'm not sure." [...]

"He should be a target. Yoo should be a target. There are a number of targets," said Nadler, referring to for Bush administration counsel John Yoo, who also authorized torture and is now a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Bybee, noted Nadler, "is the only one who's a federal court judge now." [...]

"This whole call of looking forward rather than backwards -- you can't say that. The fact is, if crimes were committed, we are duty-bound under our law, we must -- the United States must investigate torture if it happened in America. That's the law. And the fact is, the law specifically says that instructions from higher officials is not an excuse. And we are obligated to investigate and, if indicated, to prosecute. The failure to at least investigate would be a violation of law," he said.

Fasten your seatbelts.

VIDEO-- Claire McCaskill: We Need To Look At Impeaching Jay Bybee

By GottaLaff

I'm glad this is getting some attention:



McCaskill also reiterates what we already know: President Obama has made it clear he "doesn't want to look in the rearview mirror."

Steve Benen writes, “The question shouldn’t be whether to impeach Jay Bybee, but rather, how quickly the impeachment hearings can begin.”

My original post about calling for the impeachment of Bybee is here.

NYT editorial calls for impeachment of Judge Jay Bybee

By GottaLaff

Rachel Maddow mentioned the possibility of Bybee's impeachment the other day. Now the New York Times echoes the sentiment:

In his capacity as former head of the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC), Jay Bybee’s “name appears as the author of the August 1, 2002 memo justifying and authorizing clear acts of torture by the CIA.” For his willingness to engage in torturous legal reasoning, Bybee was awarded a lifetime seat on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals by President Bush.

And he was approved by the Senate by a wide margin. Maybe he and Mukasey can become Facebook friends. The New York Times:

These memos make it clear that Mr. Bybee is unfit for a job that requires legal judgment and a respect for the Constitution. Congress should impeach him.

The California Democratic Party, which is holding its convention next weekend, will consider “a resolution from grassroots activists calling for Jay Bybee’s impeachment.”

I'm sure the Rushpublics would most certainly include him in their "activist judge" category.

Kidding... I'm kidding.