"I will reject a legal framework that does not work," candidate Obama said. "I have faith in America's courts and I have faith in our [Judge Advocate Generals] ... As president, I will close Guantanamo, reject the Military Commissions Act and adhere to the Geneva Conventions ... Our Constitution and our Uniform Code of Military Justice provide a framework for dealing with the terrorists ... Our Constitution works. We will again set an example for the world that the law is not subject to the whims of stubborn rulers and that justice is not arbitrary."
Davis shakes his head.
"What happened to that guy?" Obama "has now embraced and kissed on the lips the whole Bush concept [of military commissions]. He failed to keep a single promise he made in that speech."
A White House spokesman declined to comment for this story. In the past, administration officials, including Attorney General Eric Holder, have blamed Democrats and Republicans in Congress for thwarting the government's efforts to prosecute terrorist suspects in federal courts by withholding funding to hold trials. While that is true in the case of self-professed 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and his co-conspirators, it does not explain the decision Obama made in May 2009--four months after he was sworn in as president--to resurrect military commissions.
What is clear is that Obama succumbed to the pressure from Defense Department officials and Republicans in Congress, notably Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), to hold the tribunals. Moreover, when Obama announced the return of military commissions he had just endured a month of blistering attacks from Republicans and former Vice President Dick Cheney for releasing the infamous "torture memos" drafted by Bush administration lawyers John Yoo and Jay Bybee. Read Full Article Here | Truthout
Posts
