Buried inside today's NYT, I saw this little AP nugget:
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has blocked the release of more photographs of foreign detainees abused by their American captors, saying their release would endanger American soldiers.
The story went on to state as follows:
The Obama administration filed a brief with the Supreme Court late Friday saying Mr. Gates had invoked new powers blocking the release.
The American Civil Liberties Union had sued for the release of 21 color photographs showing prisoners in Afghanistan and Iraq being abused by Americans. Federal courts had rejected the government’s arguments to block their release, so Congress gave Mr. Gates new powers to keep them private under a law signed last month by President Obama.
Mr. Gates’s order specifically cites the 21 photos sought by the A.C.L.U., and 23 additional ones cited in a ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
I had not seen this story before, and it does not appear to have been diaried here thus far. I have seen many diaries here insisting that the Obama DOJ must prosecute the crimes of its predecessors, most notably torture, if the rule of law is to be revived in this country. While I have always shared the sentiments of the authors of those diaries, I have also always believed that the DOJ had no interest in such prosecutions.
This article confirms my worst suspicions in that regard. This WH went to court to stop the release of photos, lost in court, got Congress to change the law, and went back to court for a 2d round. Under that set of circumstances, it's hard to see the WH ever prosecuting anyone other than the smallest fry for torture.
I honestly wish it were otherwise. The very idea of Bush's holdover SecDef being given the authority to hide torture photos pursuant to legislation sought by the Obama WH is the antithesis of Change. It's not something I would've believed in as a potential scenario during the campaign.
It's a disturbing development that I thought deserved some attention here.