Fortunately we have strong institutions that blunted this last regime's efforts to impose a Bu$hite tyranny.  

Unfortunately they were able to push well beyond the envelope of freedom guaranteed by our Constitution because of misplaced allegiance to party, or simple cowardice in the face of determined usurpers.   

We have been given the gift of liberty through our institutions distilled from our Constitution. 

If we forfeit this gift and allow these institutions to crumble, we are no better than the Germans that allowed the Weimar Republic to disintegrate into the horror of the Third Reich.   

Great summary Junebug: 

Got that?  We need to avoid the chilling effect that prosecution would have on lawyers to provide the US government with "deeply flawed" legal advice!

Who needs unscrupulous lawyers when you have lawmakers like this?  

It simply boggles the mind, doesn’t it!!?? 

On Wednesday, three senators — Republicans John McCain of Arizona and Lindsay Graham of South Carolina, along with Joseph I. Lieberman, independent of Connecticut — sent a letter to Mr. Obama strongly urging him not to prosecute such lawyers, even though their legal advice was “deeply flawed,” the senators said.

“Moving in such a direction would have a deeply chilling effect on the ability of lawyers in any administration to provide their client — the U.S. government — with their best legal advice,” they wrote.

+++

Yeah, so we need to sheild lawyers from telling the guvmint that torturing people is ok, even though any honest assessment of the law says the opposite... And now the important thing is to make sure that the give good advice! Maybe the better thing is that the lawyers give good advice, and then they don't need legal protections.

If they thought they needed protecting, maybe they should have sought presidential pardons.

The governments compelling interest is to prosecute, and thereby disuading future a$$hole Prezelnits from trying to fabricate legal justifications for illegal actions.

Please indict.

I want discovery.

Lets see who was complicit.

Nancy doth protest too loudly!

Lets the Bama's justice department release ALL the documents unredacted.

Thanks for the high 5, Mody!  Looks like the silent single-star stalker has struck though.  That plays right into Phaedrus' observations.

It absolutely amazes me that the GOPhers are trying to reframe the torture issue in so many ways.  That, in itself, demonstrates the absolute absence of  political and moral leadership - without the Bush WH gang calling the signals, the  GOPhers in Congress have collapsed like so many puppets with broken strings. 

Each is channeling Cheney but with a different slant to justify illegal torture.     

Nearly six months after the election, they appear to have a learning curve as flat as adam's - behaving like they still possess the power to issue lame, irrational excuses then walk away.  Old habits die hard, hunh? 

I was stunned to read Sen. Kit Bond's sound bite today about behaving like a banana republic when we "criminally prosecute people we disagree with" just because the party in control has changed. 

Who's he trying to dumb down, anyway? 

The US ratified the Geneva Convention.  Yeah, Geneva is a foreign country but the US Constitution actually says that even non-American treaties, when ratified, have the full force of law.

Torture was not outlawed because it did or didn't work.  It was outlawed so that those who torture would be put on notice that they would be punished! 

Why?  Because the WORLD had decided to set certain rigid, non-negotiable standards of human behavior.

And, you may wish to step back from the Reid/Pelosi/Leahy/Obama tress and and look at the forest, Postie -

Torture is illegal; Waterboarding is torture; The CIA waterboarded.  Seems simple enough without any redactions, doesn't it?

The perfect storm.

Randi Roades returns to the airwaves May 11th.

Been a while since I've heard any good conspiracy theories.

Kinda like sensory waterboarding.

Postie -

Are you adaming us - immediately going way off-topic?  Is torture so passe' in your world?  Does it trigger thoughts of Randi?  What's going on?

Postal old buddy, I have noticed that you have given out a couple of three star ratings to the camp on the other side of the river over the last couple of weeks.   You seem to be less than enthusiastic about Hairy Reed and Nancy Plotsie, and the whole sordid mess in general. 

Me too.  Maybe there is common ground here.   The whole danged bunch inside the beltway is suspect.  I guess that is a non-partisan approach. 

I agree with you.  Release all the memos and any other evidence and let us repair the foundation of our Constitutional Republic so that we can indeed move forward as President Obama is so fond of saying. 

Good show old fellow!