Nancy Pelosi was briefed on and signed off on torture. She won’t impeach because she is an accessory to war crimes.

She would be impeaching and convicting herself.

Glenn Greenwald

Tuesday July 15, 2008 08:16 EDT

The motivation for blocking investigations into Bush lawbreaking

…one important political impediment to holding Bush officials accountable for their illegal torture program:

An additional complicating factor is that key members of Congress sanctioned this program, so many of those who might ordinarily be counted on to lead the charge are themselves compromised.

As we witness not just Republicans, but also Democrats in Congress, acting repeatedly to immunize executive branch lawbreaking and to obstruct investigations, it’s vital to keep that fact in mind. With regard to illegal Bush programs of torture and eavesdropping, key Congressional Democrats were contemporaneously briefed on what the administration was doing (albeit, in fairness, often in unspecific ways). The fact that they did nothing to stop that illegality, and often explicitly approved of it, obviously incentivizes them to block any investigations or judicial proceedings into those illegal programs.

In December of last year, The Washington Post revealed:

Four members of Congress met in secret for a first look at a unique CIA program designed to wring vital information from reticent terrorism suspects in U.S. custody. For more than an hour, the bipartisan group, which included current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), was given a virtual tour of the CIA’s overseas detention sites and the harsh techniques interrogators had devised to try to make their prisoners talk.

Among the techniques described, said two officials present, was waterboarding, a practice that years later would be condemned as torture by Democrats and some Republicans on Capitol Hill. But on that day, no objections were raised. Instead, at least two lawmakers in the room asked the CIA to push harder, two U.S. officials said.

The article noted that other Democratic members who received briefings on the CIA’s interrogation program included Jay Rockefeller and Jane Harman.

Tom Tomorrow on the reign of the stupid people

Hat tip to Blue Girl @ They Gave Us a Republic…

I posted part 1 yesterday. Updated Wednesday, August 06, 2008



In this update today, an Iraqi journalist continues his series of video reports of the ‘real’ reality on the ground in Iraq, with part 2…

Baghdad, 5 years on (part 2): killing fields

One Baghdad’s killings fields on the edge of Sadr City. The scene of thousands of sectarian murders over the last three years, it is a desolate and evil place: ‘Only the killers and the killed ever come here’ says Abdul-Ahad. Here in the thousands of unmarked graves lie the victims of militia gangs. Video by Ghaith Abdul-Ahad.

4 min 28 sec

An Iraqi journalist begins a series of video reports of the ‘real’ reality on the ground in Iraq, with…

Baghdad, 5 years on (part 1): City of walls

US claims that the military surge is bringing stability to Iraq. By travelling through the heart of Baghdad its easy to see by enclosing the Sunni and Shia populations behind 12ft walls, the surge has left the city more divided and desperate than ever.

4 min 37 sec

On the flip… Pepe Escobar of Asia Times deconstructs and shreds the sole foundation of McCain’s presidential campaign…

August 4, 2008 – 6 min 27 sec – Obama sells Europeans on Afghan war

European public hails Obama as the anti-Bush, but politicians cool to idea of more troops in Afghanistan

The Guardian headline said “Obama gets rock star welcome” One Berliner called it “an Anti-Bush rally”, and the Financial Times Deutshland called it an “ad for the war on terror “. In a speech laden with cold war rhetoric, Democratic Presidential hopeful Barack Obama stood before more than 200,000 people in Berlin on thursday and summoned Europeans and Americans to work together on many issues, from Iraq and Afghanistan to the “War on Terror” and climate change. Andreas Zumach of Die Tageszietung: European politicians are somewhat glad about the general statements Obama made on the need for improving the Euro-Atlantic alliance again. They have read about what he said on more cooperation on global issues like climate change, on the US in the future more obeying international law. They are very wary, especially the ones in Germany, France, and the other big European countries, about the clear message he sent on Afghanistan, where he very clearly and undiplomatically said, “We need more of your troops in Afghanistan,” which means more war fighting done by the Europeans in a war that’s bound to be lost.

Hat tip to Jeralyn Merritt at Talkleft for this:

If you had to guess which presidential candidate was consulting Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice on foreign affairs would you pick the one from her party — a party which has frequently suggested she be added to the ticket as the VP candidate — or the candidate from the other party? The Aspen Daily News, citing a new Time Magazine article, says it’s Obama who has been consulting Condi Rice on foreign affairs.

From the Time article:

A few days before he left on his eight-country world tour, Barack Obama wanted to discuss the trip with an old contact in Washington: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Obama’s phone call was in part a courtesy, but over three years of occasional phone conversations, the two have quietly discussed everything from foreign aid to the Middle East and nuclear proliferation. Obama and Rice have come to have a certain respect for each other, says an Obama aide familiar with their conversations, because both take an intellectual, sober view of foreign affairs. “They’ve had good exchanges,” the aide says. “Does he treat her as someone whom he has respect for? Absolutely. Does he listen to her on occasion? Absolutely.”

The little-known Rice-Obama link is just the latest surprise in a summer of unexpected shifts in American foreign policy.

…

It may prove bittersweet to watch as a new President gets credit for policies she and Bush have promoted, but that is the price of embracing diplomacy so late in the game. At least, says the Obama aide, she can expect the phone calls to continue.

Nothing special to say this morning. so maybe a little Honky Tonk fun for breakfast might be a good idea?

Here’s couple of old Jerry Jeff specials to prime the pump with.

Why don’t the rest of you add your favorites to liven’ up the place? 😉

Out of some morbidly twisted sense of fascination with the loathsome, nasty, repellent and repulsive side of life (after all, why else would I have spent all these years blogging about the metaphorical trail of slime left behind by this guy?) I might just break a nearly fifteen year record and actually go into a movie theater again and put up with the 10 or so minutes of 120 decibel commercials to watch this one. I have no idea why otherwise.

Here’s the trailer for Oliver Stone’s upcoming movie to be released October 17, based on the life of President George W. Bush. Josh Brolin plays Bush, Elizabeth Banks plays his wife Laura, and Richard Dreyfuss plays Vice President Dick Cheney. Best of all, Rob Corddry plays former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer.

Here’s “W.”…

July 29, 2008 – 3 min 10 sec – Scores killed by blasts in Baghdad and Kirkuk could be a forewarning as rival elites fight for power

Three female suicide bombers and a roadside bomb struck Shiite pilgrims taking part in a massive religious procession in Baghdad on Monday. Police said at least 32 people were killed and 102 wounded. The attacks occurred in quick succession in the early morning in the mainly Shiite Karradah district, as tens of thousands of Shiite worshippers streamed toward the pilgrimage site in Kazimiyah, northern Baghdad. Meanwhile at a Kurdish rally in the northern city of Kirkuk, A bomb blast killed at least 15 people and wounded 170 others. The attack occurred while demonstrators gathered to protest a provincial elections law being debated in Parliament. The law would limit the Kurds ability to control oil-rich Kirkuk which they consider to be part of their historical land. Last week Kurdish parties walked out of the Iraqi parliament in protest over the proposed law. Though the law was passed 127 to 13 it was later vetoed by President Jalal Talibani, who is also a Kurd. Though many reports claim violence in Iraq to be at its lowest point in three years, the political situation is still very volatile.