Prosecute Our Own War Crimes? Do We Or Don't We

One thing that will dog the Bush Administration after they have left office will be their torture techniques and International war crimes they committed. How hard will the Obama Administration push for prosecutions or transparency?

Matt Yglesias writes:

"I think it’s important to draw a distinction between simply declining to engage in war crimes prosecutions as a matter of prosecutorial discretion, and actually taking prosecution off the table. The latter should be done, if at all, only in exchange for confessions, expressions of remorse, and cooperation with investigations. The former is probably the better part of wisdom for now, but many of the perpetrators can be expected to live for decades and absent something like a real Truth and Reconciliation Commission the door should be left open to doing something down the road if circumstances change. I don’t think it’s even remotely acceptable to just give a full retrospective stamp of approval on everything that was done during the Bush years merely because that might be the most convenient way to build legislative support for Obama’s domestic agenda."

America needs to hear the truth, people need to held accountable. At the least, we need a Truth and Reconciliation Commission like they had in post-WWII Germany and post-Apartheid South Africa. As much as I'd like to see Cheney and Rumsfeld is jail, given that Washington DC is overrun with "Good Germans" who either enabled Bush’s acts, or averted their eyes when they happened, I doubt any domestic war crimes prosecutions will get off the ground. But Internationally? I have hope.

And for perpetrators living for decades sans truth, does Cheney's black heart have that luck?

Add this stooge to the List, architect of torture and defender of the legality of torturing children, John Yoo.



Source: Matthew Yglesias