Bush the Waterboarder

Waterboarding is a crime

Back in May of 2007, when the Bushites were putting together "secret new rules governing interrogations," the New York Times reported that "a group of experts advising the intelligence agencies [argued] that the harsh techniques used since the 2001 terrorist attacks are outmoded, amateurish and unreliable."

Our interrogation methods, claimed these experts, are "a hodgepodge that date from the 1950s, or are modeled on old Soviet practices." Soviet practices? The KGB?

There has been an outcry that these techniques, or what some call "expedient methods," are immoral and unjustifiable. That is no doubt true. But the researchers have found something else: "there is little evidence ... that harsh methods produce the best intelligence."

But facts have always been treated as irrelevant by the Bushites. Thus the Bush administration went ahead with an executive order setting new rules for the CIA, which would ban some interrogation techniques, but would authorize certain unnamed methods disallowed in the military by the Army Field Manual.

Bush says these disallowed methods are "crucial." Push up the pain and the bad guys will tell us what we want, says Bush. That may be true, but what Bush wants to hear may not be the truth.

It all came to a head a few days ago on February 13. It turns out that one of those disallowed methods that Bush likes so much is waterboarding. But, this time Bush didn't get his way. When the Intelligence Authorization Bill came to the floor of the U.S. Senate, it contained a provision by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) that established one interrogation standard across the government: the standard set out by the U.S. Army Field Manual on Human Intelligence.

The Senate voted in favor of the bill, 51-45. (I think every one of those 45 senators who voted "no" should undergo the experience of waterboarding: Just so's they get to know what they're talking about.)

John McCain (R-AZ), who has on previous occasions spoken strongly in favor of the standards found in the Army Field Manual, caved in to right-wing pressure and voted, "No." Please note that former POW and American hero John McCain voted IN FAVOR OF TORTURE! As we've said before, McCain has nary a moral bone in his body!

Bush says he'll veto the bill. He wants to waterboard those terrorist suckers! That will mean, of course, that old waffling John will have to vote again - either to signal his opposition to torture or to crawl in bed with the Bush slimebuckets.

There's a reason Bush wants a vote in favor of waterboarding and it has to do with more than just his desire to torture people. Again from Keith Olbermann:

"It is a fact startling in its cynical simplicity and it requires cynical and simple words to be properly expressed: The presidency of George W. Bush has now devolved into a criminal conspiracy to cover the ass of George W. Bush ...

"All of it is now, after one revelation last week, transparently clear for what it is: the pathetic and desperate manipulation of the government, the refocusing of our entire nation, toward keeping this mock president and this unstable vice president and this departed wildly self-overrating attorney general, and the others, from potential prosecution for having approved or ordered the illegal torture of prisoners being held in the name of this country."

Waterboarding is torture! Mr. Bush said the US does not torture. Mr. Bush is a liar!

But, if waterboarding really is torture, then Bush and company are in deep caca! They are guilty of serious crimes. And that would mean they're going to jail.

So, if you want to keep this lying, torturing president out of prison, write to your Senator and tell him/her to vote not to override the veto.

Then try to sleep at night.


George's Fantasy World

Jim Hightower tells good stories. This one is especially good. It's about a painting Bush has hanging in the Oval Office; a 1916 cowboy picture by one W.H.D. Koerner, titled "A Charge to Keep." It shows a guy on a horse "determinedly charging up what appears a steep and rough trail."

Bush likes to think that depicts the way he is. People who have seen the painting have been known to remark that the guy tearing up the trail reminds them of old George hisself.

But, "Over the years," says Mr. Hightower, "Bush has added a Christian morality tale to the painting, declaring that the artist based it on a Methodist hymn, and that the indomitable horseman really is a circuit-riding minister rushing passionately ahead to spread he religion of Methodism..."

Ho, ho, ho. Hightower's point here is that Bush lives in a world of his own creation, a fantasy that has little or no relationship to reality.

Yep. What Bush tells people about his painting is NOT true. Koener created the painting for a Saturday Evening Post story called "The Slipper Tongue," which has to do with a horse thief, and not only is the guy tearing up the trail not a hero, he is the horse thief hisself trying to get away from a lynch mob.

Hightower suggests that "...when Bush says that he sees himself in the painting he might inadvertently be revealing the truth."


It's About Time

The U.S. House of Representatives finally did something right! They voted to charge two Bush administration chump-a-lumps with contempt!

The vote was 223-32 to hold presidential chief of staff Josh Bolten and former White House counsel Harriet Miers in contempt for failing to cooperate with subpoenas ordering them to appear before the House Judiciary Committee. Yeah! (Some "angry" Repubs walked out of the chamber.)

Congress wants documents from 2006-2007 relative to the firing of U.S. attorneys who some think were fired with White House authorization because they were more concerned with upholding the law than protecting Republican party interests.

It's about time the feet of these contemptible Bush officials were held to the fire. For too long they have acted as if they were above the law and beholden to no one or no thing.

The White House is whining as usual about this blatant display of partisanship and claims that the info desired is protected by executive privilege and that Bolten and Miers are immune from prosecution.

That's par for the course. The Bushites have been breaking the law with impunity for seven years! Why shouldn't they have immunity now?

This action, by the way, was the first time in 25 years that a full House has voted on a contempt of Congress citation.

May there be many more! And may the crooks go to jail!


FEMA remains incompetent

Toxic levels of formaldehyde have been discovered in hundreds of government-issued trailers used to house hurricane victims. FEMA has known about this for some time but has failed to take action, other than telling the occupants not to breathe deeply and to open the windows!

Congressional Democrats have accused FEMA of doctoring information to play down the risk of these formaldehyde fumes. One CDC expert who suggested that any level of exposure to formaldehyde may cause cancer was demoted.

Now FEMA says it will hurry to move people out of about 35,000 trailers. "Hurry" in this case means FEMA hopes this can be done by summer. I think they mean 2008.

Ah sheesh! FEMA, while moving people out of trailers in one area, is at the same time moving people into trailers in another area. FEMA plans to distribute mobile homes to people left homeless as a result of the tornadoes last week in Arkansas and Tennessee.

"There will be processes put in place to ensure safety," said James McIntrye, a FEMA spokesman.

Right.


Lincoln Chafee endorses Obama

Just in case you missed this. The former Republican senator from Rhode Island gave Barack Obama his endorsement on Thursday (Feb. 14). Obama, claimed Mr. Chafee, is the most likely candidate to restore the credibility of the U.S.

"I believe Senator Obama is the best candidate to restore American credibility, to restore our confidence, to be moral and just, and to bring people together to solve the complex issues such as the economy, the environment and global stability," said Sen. Chafee.

Chafee was the only Republican in the Senate to vote against the war in Iraq. In other words, he's a real American hero!

Consider his comments: In his endorsement of Obama, he explicity condemns the Bush administration of destroying American credibility, of destroying our people's confidence in their country, of being immoral and unjust, and dividing people to the extent that solutions to economic, environmental and global problems could not be discovered.

I think that sums up the situation rather neatly.


Post Script

Mike Huckabee, that ethically-challenged theocratic candidate for prez, complained the other day that campaigning was very difficult and tiring. It was so difficult and tiring that he felt like he had been waterboarded.

Isn't that funny?

Not. The question is, why would anyone think this chump has any of the qualities that we need as president?