Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Obama's Tortured Stance on Torture

By Ivan Eland
April 21, 2009

Although Barack Obama should be applauded for stopping torture by the U.S. government and pledging to close the infamous Guantanamo and worldwide CIA secret prisons, he is nevertheless playing politics with the issue to get the best of both worlds.

Read on.
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3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Here's my analysis, for what it is worth - - since corporations are too big to fail and I am too small to matter. Why would Obama set himself up for a beating in the national and international polls over his support for letting those who tortured, and those who wrote the legal torture memos in the DOJ, go scott free? Before I answer, let me say that Obama has already paid a high price. His favorabiity rating in the U.S. polls has fallen 12 points, while the same polls in the EU show a drop of 19 points. The answer? I think Obama made a deal with Republican leaders back in February 2006 to keep Bush and members of his administration safe from prosecution. According to my sources, Obama thinks Bush had paralegal powers due to the war on terror, the same powers that other presidents exercised in times of war: namely, Washington, Lincoln, Wilson, FDR and Truman. However, Obama failed to take into account the blowback from his stated preference and then his turnaround in the press today. Americans have lost a lot of faith in the man who was supposed to change Washington. No wonder, in the past two weeks he has become the poster boy for duplicitous Washington insiders.
He who fails to enforce the law is just as guilty as he who breaks the law. I suggest that the president announce that his feelings on matter do not carry the force of law and he regrets premepting the roles of the U.S. Congress and the Department of Justice. If he does not, his reelection chances are in danger. The polls in swing states he carried in 2008 show he has lost ground big time. In none of these states is his approval rating above 48 percent.

Tue Apr 21, 11:58:00 AM 2009
Anonymous said...

Applauded? I find it staggering that someone who is so skeptical of state power would be so swooned by this new President.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/5157102/Guantanamo-inmate-is-first-to-speak-from-inside-camp.html

"Since Obama took charge he has not shown us that anything will change."

Sat Apr 25, 05:22:00 AM 2009
1stProtestinTheStreet said...

If you do nothing else for your Country today,

SIGN THE PETITION To Prosecute Them For Torture

Sign The Petitions To Prosecute Them For Torture at:

http://ANGRYVoters.org

.

Wed Apr 29, 03:13:00 PM 2009

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