Perverting justice for politics

Josh Marshall, Talking Points Memo wrote:

... the White House has now taken the unprecedented step of firing at least four and likely seven US Attorneys in the middle of their terms of office -- at least some of whom are in the midst of corruption investigations of Bush administration officials and key Republican lawmakers. We also know that they're taking advantage of a handy provision of the USA Patriot Act that allows the White House to replace these fired USAs with appointees who don't need to be approved by the senate.

And one of the replacements, who will remain until Bush is out of office:

So who's Griffin and what experience does he bring to the job?
Well, top of the list seems to be his stint at the White House where he worked for Karl Rove doing opposition research on Democrats.
...
Back in 2000, when he was in charge of digging up dirt on Al Gore, he apparently had a poster hanging on the wall behind his desk which read: "On my command - unleash hell on Al."

Another result of passing the U.S.A.P.A.T.R.I.O.T Act without reading it. [edit: Apparently it was in the reauthorization, not the original Act.]

More, with links to the relevant law.
Diane Feinstein spoke about it today.

I'm telling you, American Democracy is dead.

There's many more surprises to come. The administration will be ruthless, in their waining days, to build absolute power into the Monarchy... er, Presidency. :eyebrow:

It looks like Arlen Specter snuck it in during the conference committee at te request of the DOJ.

Anyone see Bush on 60 minutes saying he didn't care what Congress thought he should do about the war, and that he had "made up his mind"? (I'm sure that took long.)

Also, did anyone else read that this current Congress had worked 14 less days in 2006 than the "Do Nothing Congress" of the 40's? I can't find the link anymore...

Well, the last Congress. The current Congress hasn't worked 14 days yet.

Happy Monkey;308068 wrote:

Well, the last Congress. The current Congress hasn't worked 14 days yet.

Taking last Monday off to watch a football game that started well into the evening was a pretty interesting way to kick things off.

But I'm sure they have already come up with a nice retroactive justification for it by now.

Ibram;307810 wrote:

I'm telling you, American Democracy is dead.

Good thing we're a Republic.:eyebrow:

Yes, but one that's supposed to have some voting power.

Speaking of the topic... remember the tests done by the Midwestern college proving something like 20% of the death row inmates of a state prison innocent based on old DNA evidence being halted from ever being done again at another prison... ever.
Can't have any more innocents being kept from being murdered by the state now can we?
Might make a DA look bad... truth hurts huh?

Happy Monkey;307776 wrote:

U.S.A.P.A.T.R.I.O.T Act

So are the dems going to yank that law out of the books by the roots first chance they get or are we stuck with it?

A lot of them voted for it - twice - including Feinstein. I suspect that the best we can hope for is chipping at it as individual outrages come to light.

I hope they get rid of it retroactively and make right any wrongs done under it. Justice.

Just tell me which prez candidate promises to repeal it and they gets my vote.

And something else if they don't.

As long as it is ALL of BOTH of them.

Happy Monkey;308203 wrote:

A lot of them voted for it - twice - including Feinstein. I suspect that the best we can hope for is chipping at it as individual outrages come to light.

Twice? I thought this was snuck into the redo, but didn't appear in the original? :confused:

He is referring, I believe, to the original Patriot Act and its follow up Act (Patriot Act II?) and not the amendment Specter snuck into the renewal under cover of darkness.

Yeah, Specter's turd was only voted on once, but the toiletful as a whole was passed twice.

Beestie;308215 wrote:

Just tell me which prez candidate promises to repeal it and they gets my vote.

And something else if they don't.

In that case, I will continue to pimp Ron Paul.

You mean Rupaul?

Nah, you're thinking of the modern GOP Ron is old school.

No I meant RuPaul

A depressing story.

"Colby Vokey?" muses retired Col. Jane Siegel "Integrity almost seems like a word too small to describe him."
Says Lt. Col. Matthew Cord, "He's just one of the best."
So when Vokey announced recently that he wanted to leave the Corps, it said something troubling about the military system of justice that he's served for almost 20 years. Vokey charges that some commanders and officials in the Bush administration have abused the system of justice, and he's going to retire from the Corps May 1, 2008.
...
The U.S. has imprisoned hundreds of "enemy combatants" at Guantanamo Bay in a military legal system that Vokey denounces as "horrific." Vokey saw the system first-hand when he agreed two years ago to defend a teenager there who had been charged with murdering a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan. Vokey said he knew the case would be difficult, but he discovered that the legal system at Guantanamo is a "sham."
Vokey said the military staff constantly harassed him and interfered with his defense work by making it difficult even to meet with his client or show his client the government's evidence against him. The teenager confessed to killing the soldier, but he told Vokey he confessed after being shackled for hours in excruciating positions and bombarded by screeching music and flashing lights.
FBI agents have reported seeing detainees treated in similar ways and investigators at human rights groups have reported evidence suggesting that detainees are routinely abused.
Vokey calls the system "disgraceful."
"Anytime you want to subvert the rule of law to the power of a government, you've got a very bad thing brewing," Vokey told NPR. "As an officer in the Marine Corps I took an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. And now we are perpetrating something that if any other country in the world was doing, we would likely step in and stop it."