Sen. Leahy Echoes Clips & Comment; Calls for Truth Commission on Bush Presidency
Filed under: Bush Foreign Policy, George W. Bush, National Security, Terrorism
Ever since I submitted two ideas to then President-elect Barack Obama’s “Citizens Briefing Book,” I’ve wondered whether or not anyone with any real pull read them.
My answer: Perhaps Sen. Patrick Leahy did. According to the Associated Press today:
The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee is proposing a “truth commission” to investigate abuses of detainees, politically inspired moves at the Justice Department, and whole range of decisions made during the Bush administration.
Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said the primary goal of the commission would be to learn the truth rather than prosecute former officials, but said the inquiry should reach far beyond misdeeds at the Justice Department under Bush to include matters of Iraq prewar intelligence and the Defense Department.
Leahy outlined his suggestion for a “truth and reconciliation” commission during a speech at Georgetown University Monday.
“I’m doing this not to humiliate people or punish people but to get the truth out,” he said.
The panel he envisions would be modeled after one that investigated the apartheid regime in South Africa. It would have subpoena power but would not bring criminal charges, he said.
Among the matters Leahy wants investigated by such a commission are: the firings of U.S. attorneys, treatment and torture of terror suspect detainees, and the authorization of warrantless wiretapping.
“Rather than vengeance, we need a fair-minded pursuit of what actually happened” during the Bush administration, Leahy said.
Here’s what I wrote at change.gov and on this fine blog back on January 17:
… Here’s an idea – a truth commission. What if the concept was based around answering the questions regarding the Constitution, the efficacy of torture, who was ultimately responsible, etc. This could be done in such a way as to put off any public hearings or transparency until after a bipartisan panel of serious legal, policy experts and just plain citizens had a chance to pursue the issues with subpoena power under a media blackout. Their product would be public. …
FIRST!
Call to Action: Citizens Briefing Book to Close – Vote or Submit Your Ideas This Weekend
Filed under: Barack Obama, Energy Policy, Obama Transition
I would encourage anyone who is online this weekend to visit and participate in the Obama team’s Citizens’ Briefing Book.
Let go of the cynic in you for just a few minutes and give them the benefit of the doubt that the ideas being collected and the voting on those ideas will actually be considered in the Obama policy agenda. The signup was easy and after that you can ideate and vote to your heart’s content.
I posted two ideas today, which I’ll write about later. One deals with a potentially constructive way to handle the torture legacy and another speaks to the need for a bridge to the energy future, not just an Apollo-style grand solution.
The more we use web-based outreach efforts by government, perhaps the more they will be offered. Perhaps this attempt at transparency, or at least government collection of ideas and opinion will have effect.
One thing I will say is that if government at various levels is going to seek information in this manner, government cannot just “reply” to the ideas which they find “easy” to speak on. Some of the highly voted ideas are not mainstream, but due to their “popularity” an acknowledgment from somewhere in government might go a long way to fighting cynicism. The briefing book closes at 6 p.m. Sunday.
