DICK Cheney and State Sponsored Torture

VP DICK Cheney appeared on CBS’ Face the Nation this morning.  This interview wasn’t substantively different from any of the others he’s done in the past month:

Cheney also urged the Obama administration to continue the Bush administration’s interrogation policies.

“I would hope [Obama] would avoid doing what others have done in the past, which is letting the campaign rhetoric guide his judgment in this absolutely crucial area,” Cheney said. “We were very careful, we did everything by the book, and in fact we produced very significant results.”

So many problems with that statement, DICK.  There are a great many smart people, including former members of the Bush Administration who warned you and David Addington about getting too carried away with agressive interrogation techniques.  Chief among their concerns was something we patriots like to call the U.S. Constitution.  There’s also this other little concern known as the Geneva Convention.  You can argue all you want that our foes in the war on terror are not lawful combatants, but the rest of the world needs to somewhat agree, or, it looks like selective application of an international human rights treaty.  And, what about the old bromide that we’re not going to stoop to their level.  There’s so much more than campaign rhetoric behind the criticisms of the Bush Administration’s endorsement of torture.

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Transcript: President George W. Bush Radio Address | Gaza Crisis Fault of Hamas | January 2-3, 2009

(Source: White House Press Office, Radio Address to be Broadcast Saturday, January 3)

THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. Over the past week, I have been monitoring the situation in the Middle East closely with the members of my national security team. Secretary Rice is actively engaged in diplomacy. And I’ve been in contact with leaders throughout the region — including the King of Saudi Arabia, the King of Jordan, the President of Egypt, the President and Prime Minister of the Palestinian Territories, and the Prime Minister of Israel.

This recent outburst of violence was instigated by Hamas — a Palestinian terrorist group supported by Iran and Syria that calls for Israel’s destruction. Eighteen months ago, Hamas took over the Gaza Strip in a coup, and since then has imported thousands of guns and rockets and mortars. Egypt brokered a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, but Hamas routinely violated that ceasefire by launching rockets into Israel. On December 19th, Hamas announced an end to the ceasefire and soon unleashed a barrage of rockets and mortars that deliberately targeted innocent Israelis — an act of terror that is opposed by the legitimate leader of the Palestinian people, President Abbas.

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Video: Meet the Press | December 28 | Livni, Axelrod & Predictions from Panel

Transcript: David Axelrod on ‘Meet the Press’ | December 28, 2008

(Source: NBC’s Meet the Press)

MR. GREGORY:  And turning back home, we are now joined from Chicago by senior adviser to President-elect Obama, David Axelrod.  Welcome back to MEET THE PRESS.

MR. DAVID AXELROD:  Thanks, David.  Good to be here.

MR. GREGORY:  What is the president-elect’s position on this offensive against Gaza by Israel?

MR. AXELROD:  Well, obviously, it’s a very serious situation.  He spent some time on the phone with Secretary Rice yesterday, and he is monitoring the situation.  But we’ve said repeatedly through this transition period that we–there’s only one president at a time, and President Bush speaks for the United States of America until January 20th, and we’re going to honor that moving forward.

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Fox News’ Chris Wallace Gets Long Interview with Cheney and The Word “Torture” Is Not Uttered Once

Chris Wallace may come from the same gene pool of his dad, 60 Minutes’ Mike Wallace, but he couldn’t carry his dad’s reporter’s notebook.

As I watched Wallace interview DICK Cheney today on Fox News Sunday, I was given more reason to lament the hard times our U.S. newspaper industry is experiencing.  The only pure journalists left are at the nation’s dailies, where journalism is a craft and the pursuit of truth and both sides of the story is relentless.

TV just doesn’t have the time, or the journalistic talent for the most part to act as the Fourth Estate, the Watchdog.  Wallace failed his country miserably today when he did not press Cheney on the U.S. torture policy in the wake of 9/11.  Part of the problem must me be that he’s an airhead — does he lack basic information or the ability to synthesize it?  The other part of the problem is that Fox is going to run out the Bush Administration string and remain the “Republican Network” until January 19.

Here’s another thing Wallace did today that will hopefully have the elder Wallace on the phone bawling him out.  He gave in to doublespeak, the euphemism.  In a word search of the interview with Cheney, not once does the word “torture” cross either one of these guys’ lips.  Here’s the closest either one ever comes to calling torture, torture:

I think you can have a robust interrogation program with respect to high-value detainees. -  Dick Cheney

There is a legitimate argument to be made that much of what the U.S. did under the Bush Administration in the so-called War on Terror actually exacerbated the problem in many parts of the world.  By setting up Guantanamo, extraordinary rendition, black-site dententions and torture, they did more to dishonor the Constitution and rile up a generation of Third World extremists than they ever did to keep us safe.

The butcher’s bill for the arrogance and paranoia of Dick Cheney will likely be paid well into the future.  Chris Wallace didn’t even scratch the surface.

Transcript: DICK Cheney on Fox News Sunday | The Exit Interview | December 21, 2008

(Source: CQ Transcriptswire)

Editor’s Note: This portion of the show transcript contains only the Cheney interview.

Mr. Chris WALLACE: Mr. Vice President, welcome back to “Fox News Sunday.”

Vice-President Dick CHENEY: It’s good to be back, Chris.

WALLACE: The president has announced a $13 billion short-term loan to the U.S. auto makers without binding conditions on the unions or the bond holders.

Haven’t you, in effect, kicked this problem down the road to the Obama administration?

CHENEY: Well, I wouldn’t describe it quite the way you did, Chris. I think what he’s tried to do is manage a difficult problem. And obviously, an important consideration is the fact that we’re in the middle of a transition and that it will shortly become a problem that the next administration’s going to have to deal with. Read more

Transcript: President George W. Bush at American Enterprise Institute, Includes Q&A | December 18, 2008

(Source: White House Press Office)

10:44 A.M. EST

MR. DeMUTH: Mr. President, what’s on your mind this morning?

THE PRESIDENT: First, thanking you for being the leader that you’ve been, and thanking AEI for generating good thought. People in the public arena need to have support for philosophy — and that’s what you provide, so I appreciate all your hard work.

I thought I’d share some thoughts about the presidency — you could call it “reflections by a guy who’s headed out of town.” (Laughter.) And then I’d be glad to answer questions — and foreign policy, if you want to. Read more

The Significance of Shoe Throwing and the Bush Foreign Policy Bottom

I woke up from a nap today and my wife told me that an Iraqi journalist threw his shoes at President George W. Bush today in Baghdad.

Admittedly, I think Bush has been a fool and he and his administration (ie. DICK Cheney) seemed to have dropped the tranny while the car was in reverse early in his first term.  This topic has been covered here before, and frankly, I’m bored with it.  This shoe throwing, however, deserves some attention.

If you spend any great amount of time outside of the 50-state strip mall we call America, and you’re not a jerk, you’ll pay attention to the cultural mores and taboos of the regions you visit and attempt to conform so as not to piss off the locals.  Eleven years ago I had the opportunity to spend some time in the Persian Gulf region.  I learned that one should mind their feet in the Arab world.

Well into my pints and having a grand time chatting with a Saudi businessman in a Bahraini hotel lounge, this big Arab guy was suddenly looming over me in my overstuffed leather chair, glaring.  My new friend got a flash of “Houston, we have a problem …” in his eyes and nodded toward my crossed leg and right foot propped up on my knee.

I instantly knew I had offended Big Arab Guy - he had sat down in a chair that left the sole of my right foot pointing at him.  I apologized in Arabic, put my foot down, apologized again and Big Arab Guy exchanged some quick words with the Saudi and returned to his seat.

I told my new friend sorry, and he shrugged it off. 

The point is, many Arab men can get their dander up pretty easy over points of honor or respect that wouldn’t even register here.  But feet — those are a level one violation.  The soles of one’s feet are thought by Arabs and many Muslims to be the dirtiest part of the body.  When you enter a mosque, the first thing you do is remove your shoes and socks and wash your feet.  Showing the soles of your feet is considered a grave sign of disrespect.

What Bush got today was the amped up version — you remove your shoes and slap someone with them.  In the case of U.S. heads of state with Secret Service protection, throwing your kicks at the prez will do just fine.

In any event, today’s shoe throwing is Bush’s official foreign policy bottom.  What should have been a quick PR trip to surreptitiously declare “Mission Accomplished” one more time before he leaves office will now be remembered for the shoe throwing incident.

Today I didn’t gloat over Bush getting what he deserves.  I genuinely felt a momentary pit in my stomach.  My how we’ve screwed things up so badly that a President of the United States would be shamed in such a profound way.  The Bushies probably don’t even realize what a low point this was today.

Video: Iraqi Journalist Throws Shoes at Bush

For a little perspective on this incident, see this post.

Transcript: Bush Delivers Defense/Terrorism Speech at West Point | December 9

(Source: White House Press Office)

11:25 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Please be seated. Thank you, General, for your warm welcome. Thank you for inviting me here to West Point. I now know why you’re so happy I’m here — (laughter — all classes were cancelled. (Applause.)

I had the honor of sitting next to the General and Judy during the game over the weekend. I am disappointed I could not bring the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy with me. However, you just get the Commander-in-Chief. (Applause.)

This is my last visit to a military academy as President, so I thought I would exercise a certain prerogative of office one last time: I hereby absolve all cadets who are on restriction for minor conduct offenses. As always, I always — I leave it to General Hagenbeck to determine what “minor” means. (Laughter.) Read more

Full Text: President Bush Radio Address, November 22 | Will Support a Big Three Bailout

If GM, Chrysler and Ford get their act together they may get their taxpayer loan yet.  President Bush says today in his weekly radio address that he will support their bailout under what sounds like reasonable circumstances.  The genie is already out of the bottle - the federal government is already propping up other private sector interests, why not three that could be engines of a real economy and not a paper economy.

Click “Read More” for the president’s full remarks:

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Pirate Theater of the Absurd: ‘African Taliban’ Now in the Mix

Will This Get the U.S. Off Its Rear?

Apparently the mere existence of pirates in the Gulf of Aden isn’t enough to get the president and the U.S. military engaged off the Horn of Africa fighting a good fight.  Well, how about pirates and terrorists?

Media around the world are now reporting that the fundamental Islamist Shabaab Militia (read terrorists) are now moving on a Somali pirate town.  According to the U.K. paper The Daily Telegraph,  the Shabaab are “likened to the African Taliban.” 

Mr. President: Could this pitch get any fatter?

The Shabaab would like to become the next in a parade of Somali governments and have moved around the country forcing their brand of fundamental Islam and Sharia law on towns and villages.  They’re not in pirate town to restore order, though.  They are there for one thing - booty.

In another development today, the pirates have received a fresh ransom from the owners of a Greek chemical tanker.  From Bloomberg:

The MV Genius, which was hijacked by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden on Sept. 26, is heading toward the United Arab Emirates after being freed on Nov. 20, Sophia Stavrakis, spokeswoman for Greece’s Merchant Marine Ministry, said by phone from Athens today. Mare Maritime Co. SA, the vessel’s owner, paid a ransom for its release, said Cteson Coucoulas, a spokesman for the company, declining to give further details.

Again, I say it’s ridiculous that in this day and age any country or business is paying off pirates.  It’s ludicrous that there are pirates to be eradicated and the United States is nowhere to be found.  Well Mssrs Bush and Cheney now there are terrorists involved.  Perhaps now I’m speaky your language.  Could there be any more opportune circumstances than having pirates and terrorists in the same town.  While they’re fighting eachother we go in and eradicate them all. 

Let’s fight them over there so we don’t have to fight them in Lake Erie.

Proposed Strategy for Fighting Pirates: USMC

It’s Day 3 of one man’s plea for the country that he loves to go out and fight pirates.  They’re out there just waiting to be run through or made to walk a plank and we sit idly by.

Yesterday the British announced they would be putting together a European armada - an armada for God’s sake - to defeat the pirates in the Gulf of Aden.  When was the last time you heard the word ‘armada’ used?  Reading some 18th or 19th century history?  Watching Master and Commander on DVD?  This is some cool stuff and we’re on the sidelines : (

Q:  Another issue. What is the U.S. going to do about the Somali pirates? And has the President been briefed about the situation? Is unilateral or a concerted effort planned?

MS. PERINO: The President has been briefed about it, and ensuring the safety and well being of the crew is of paramount importance in preventing or dealing with issues of piracy. We’re working with other members of the Security Council right now to see if there are actions that we can do to more effectively fight against piracy and prevent it.

It’s a very complicated issue. There’s a lot of international laws that factor into these efforts. One of the things that’s clear is that piracy is something that is affecting a lot more — many more waters than any of us would have known about. I mean, if you look at some of the charts that have come out, that piracy is not something that just happened back in the 1500s. This has been going on for a while. The problem is now that it’s much more dangerous and they have a lot more weapons that they’re using. And the goal would be to try to help get this ship to safety, secure the crew, and then work with our international partners to try to alleviate the piracy problem full stop.

“There’s a lot of international laws that factor into these efforts,” said Perino.  Are you crazy?  There’s one supreme law on the high seas: No Freaking Pirates!  Unbelieveable.

I saw a commercial for the U.S. Marine Corps the other day, and guess what?  They’ve got swords.  And, guess what a pirate’s weapon of choice is?  The sword.  Need I say more?  I’m calling on W to immediately gather as many leathernecks and swords as possible and ship them to the pirates’ lair.  One thing that would be extra cool and send a strong statement to the rest of the world - and potential would-be pirates - is if we actually parachuted them in.  It’s a known fact that most pirates prefer to enter battle by swinging from ropes from one ship to another.  Can you imagine if about 500 enraged, sword-wielding U.S. Marines started dropping from the sky - without ropes - onto one of the remaining pirate motherships?  I guarantee they would shit down their wooden legs.

Indian Navy Destroys Pirate Ship - Is This How Far U.S. Has Slipped?

WTF? 21st Century Pirates - Opportunity for Bush or Obama

Ahoy!

There be pirates about the seven seas and they are the real deal.

A couple of months ago I remember a story about pirates taking control of a Ukranian ship laden with arms.  It seemed silly that there are pirates capable of doing such things in the 21st century - and getting away with it - and I didn’t write about it. 

In the last two days however there have been more spectacular pirate attacks.  The Sirius Star, a 1000 foot-long oil supertanker carrying $100 million worth of Saudi crude oil lies at anchor off the Somali coast after being hijacked.  There are reports that the pirates are negotiating with U.K.-based lawyers on a ransom.  A Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship was seized by pirates off the coast of Yemen this morning.  It’s carrying thousands of tons of wheat to Iran.

The problem is Somalia.  The country has been without a legitimate government since 1991.  It’s essentially lawless.  A review of news reports shows most contemporary pirates are considered to be Somali.  The problem is also the governments and businesses who own the ships.  I was pretty surprised to find out that it is de rigeur to negotiate with pirates and essentially pay ransoms to secure the crews and cargoes taken. It pays to be a Somali pirate.

Political Opportunity?

If you think about it, it’s just ridiculous in 2008, with all of the resources, large navies and technology in the world that we have pirates.  Aaargh!

The opportunity for George W. Bush is apparent.  He is the black and white thinking president of modern times.  This pirate stuff is just that: good versus evil - black and white.  Bush is unpopular at home and abroad.  What a great way for him to go out than by declaring a war on pirates!  This one would actually be a winner.  We’re not pissing on anyone’s sovereignty, we’re going after those who are already doing that.  And, what could be a more true-blue American move than to rid the world of an evil menace.

I think if Bush captures or kills pirates on his way out, he moves the old legacy bar up a notch.  This shouldn’t be a hard sell for the president.  Pirates bad!

How about the Obama play?  If Bush demurs, there’s still a winner - the next president. 

Can you imagine the political and public relations capital Barack Obama will gain with the public and media if he goes after pirates?  Obama hasn’t taken his first steps as president and the media have already annointed him Franklin Delano Obama.  Can you imagine if this guy goes out and kicks some pirate ass?  The sky’s the limit for him then.

Somebody needs to do something about these pirates.  The whole notion of pirates who are so well resourced, trained, and lawyered up that they can ransom a supertanker is just incongruous with a civil world society.

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