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From the New York Times “Bill Puts Scrutiny on Detainees’ Lawyers:”
WASHINGTON – A provision tucked into a defense bill before Congress would direct the Pentagon’s inspector general to investigate any suspected misconduct by lawyers for Guantánamo Bay detainees, opening a new chapter in a recurrent political controversy over legal ethics and the representation of terrorism suspects.
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Lawyers for Guantánamo detainees have reacted with outrage to the proposal, saying it would have a chilling effect on their efforts to help detainees get habeas corpus hearings or to defend them in military commission trials. They are organizing to try to persuade Congress to strip the language before enacting the final bill, which must also still pass the Senate.
“No lawyers could possibly predict what conduct might fall within the law,” said David Remes, who represents several detainees. “It would therefore be impossible for Guantánamo lawyers to represent their clients effectively and zealously.”
We’ve already seen journalists banned from Guantanamo for reporting the name of an interrogator that had already been made public.
First the Pentagon came for the journalists. Now lawmakers are targeting the defense lawyers. Not just Republicans, though it was a Republican who introduced the legislation – Congressional Democrats in the House Armed Services Committee unanimously allowed this provision to be added to a defense bill “that the full House of Representatives is expected to begin debating this week.”
Anyone see a pattern here?
Accountability for those who ordered torture? Nope.
Accountability for those who lied us into war? Nope.
Accountability for Cheney’s top secret energy meetings that have resulted in the mess we now see in the Gulf, the mess that was once our Department of the Interior? Nope.
Unfair power mongering towards those who defend the rights of human beings we tortured? Yep.
Unfair power mongering towards those journalists who allow us to be an informed citizenry? You betcha!
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… reading the entire article. It’s chock-full of zeitgeist.
Once they pass the bill it will all be “legal” so everything is wonderful, right?
We don’t torture as long as we don’t call what we do torture. And we don’t fuck with defense lawyers ability to defend clients as long as we don’t call it fucking with defense lawyers ability to defend clients.
How much better could things be? And besides, those terrorists are guilty and wouldn’t be in Gitmo in the first place if they weren’t guilty terrorists in the first place, right? Why waste time on things like habeus hearings or trials?
This is all just part of process improvement and streamlining to keep you safe and secure.
Why do you love terrorists and hate America, anyway?
Vate! I moost grap mai arrm *#>#*-sunufabeech gitoffmee-”
Zee nu weltanschauung uf empyre