Could Jonathan Turley have been more clear tonight on the Rachel Maddow Show about how clear it is that war crimes have occurred, and how our populace will be complicit if we don't act soon to do something about it?
More below.
One of the first items on Rachel's show was how effective the netroots were in de-railing a Brennan nomination for CIA chief.
Then, she interviewed Jonathan Turley, professor of constitutional law at Georgetown University Law School. Turley told Rachel much of what we already know, and more of what we could guess:
- There is no question that war crimes occurred by agents of the U.S. Government.
- The Bush Administration knows it and is continuing to use the "torture memos" to justify its legality. Today's news: Bush will not pardon anyone associated with these actions because, hey, they did nothing illegal.
- Bush is calling the bluff of our Brave,Bold and Effective Democratic Congress, which secretly wants him to issue pardons so that they don't have to hold investigations and make indictments - actions that Turley was certain would be both just and appropriate, and that he was equally certain they would not take (although he never said why).
- Instead, the Congressional Dems are calling for a commission to obfuscate and delay, and wimp out of doing the right thing.
- It bears repeating: Bush knows that they are weenies and is calling their bluff. If no one reacts, Bush creates his own reality: that illegal torture did not occur. And the Dem Congress/White House validates it.
- Lesser Democracies than ours have done the right thing under similar circumstances.
- That if We, The People, let Them, The Politicians, get by with this, we are complicit in the illegal acts. (Edmond Bourke and all that.)
So, I am writing this to get some discussion going from you who are smarter, savvier, and more active than I: what must we do next to serve justice? Can someone play the part of community organizer? Sage? Agitator? Apologist? Somebody please write a diary with A Plan.
I am sitting in a red state, where even the Democrats are Blue Dogs. What can I do? Do YOU have a Senator I could write to?
And, please, explain to me, since Rachel and Mr. Turley acted like everybody but me knows: Why in the HELL does the Democratic Congress want to avoid serving justice in this case?
And finally, before this diary deteriorates into pure rant: I would like to state for the record that I have put on my Big Boy Panties and summoned my inner Mature Statesman, so that I could nod in Wise Approval of the pragmatic new cabinet and speak the talking points about Change being not Who but What and How - - and now this. Am I sentenced to simply watching my country go to hell, this time almost solely at the hands of the freakin' Democrats? Must I also nod in Wise Approval at Nancy's and Harry's or Whoever's capitulation ONE MORE TIME?? Or do we need to finally mount that coup of the Congressional leadership and get somebody's attention?
Shit.