Spanish prosecutors reportedly will seek criminal charges against Alberto Gonzales, Federal Appeals Court Judge and former Assistant Attorney General Jay Bybee, University of California law professor and former Deputy Assistant Attorney General John Yoo, former Defense Department general counsel and current Chevron lawyer William J. Haynes II, Vice President Cheney’s former chief of staff David Addington, and former Undersecretary of Defense Douglas J. Feith. In a particularly embarrassing moment for the United States, the Audencia Nacional court in Madrid asked if or when the United States was going to investigate and said that it would not order the investigation if such an investigation is begun — yielding to the United States. This is precisely what was discussed in previously on Countdown.
The Court noted that there was clear evidence of torture — a view shared by the vast majority of experts in the field. These men will not be able to travel freely once such charges are brought due to the threat of extradition. While the scene of a former Attorney General and a sitting judges accused of war criminals is shameful for our nation, it is far more shameful that the Obama administration has forced other nations to uphold international law because it is politically inconvenient to investigate known war crimes. This places the United States in the company with such countries as Serbia in shielding accused war crimes.
Bybee is particularly frustrating for civil libertarians. Bybee’s role in the torture program was already known when he faced confirmation. Despite objections, the democrats refused to block the confirmation, given a man accused of war crimes a lifetime appointment on the federal bench to rule on hundreds of cases.
The Spanish court has a credible claim in the investigation due to the alleged torture of five Spanish citizens held at Guantánamo. Now, the Obama Administration may actually seek to obstruct the investigation while preventing any special prosecutor from seeing the evidence in a domestic investigation.
The Investigation judge, Baltasar Garzón Real, gained international attention due to his investigation of Augusto Pinochet. I previously discussed the similarity of the status of Pinochet and George Bush due to the allegations of torture and war crimes. t Judge Garzón may have to step aside in presiding in the case given his role as investigator.
For the first story, click here.
To clarify:
“…that the U.S. investigation is for…”
Patty C, please try to be a little more patronizing.
Patty,
That assumes that investigation is for show, or otherwise ineffectual. If however it is a well run investigation with the intention of finding and punishing the criminal party, then it’s doing our own house cleaning.
Putting Cheney in a cell in the U.S. might be protecting him from sitting in a cell in Spain, but he’s just as incarcerated.
The U.S. has forfeited its moral standing to prosecute these criminals. Suppose that it did and one of them were acquitted. The rest of the world would justifiably, whether correctly or not, assume that the case was rigged. The U.S. kidnapped and tortured mainly foreigners, so foreigners ought to prosecute. Obama should cooperate by arresting the six defendants and extraditing them to Spain.
***Hint:
*** That means that, by a strange twist, the most effective thing the Obama Administration could do to protect the “Gonzales Six” would be to open its own criminal investigation…”
I realize the Spanish claim jurisdiction because some Spanish citizens were tortured. But I’m pretty sure some of our own laws were broken, as well as international treaties to which we are signatories, so to me that implies that we have the right and the duty to prosecute these crimes.
http://harpers.org/archive/2009/04/hbc-90004677
from Scott Horton – not Greenwald…
…and the previous thread’s reference was also NOT to Greenwald but his link to DailyKos and a Department lawyer – which apparently remains unread by he vocal.
Good reply Patty C.
Glenn Greenwald is a fine writer. He should team up with Professor Turley and other constitutional lawyers to expose this issue even more than they are currently and then eventually collaborate in an ‘amicus curiae’ if that route becomes available.
Patty,
Are you suggesting that there is no U.S. jurisdiction over war crimes committed by members of the U.S. Military and intelligence community as ordered by members the U.S. Federal government?
I’m pretty sure J.T. and others here would have figured that out in his years of calling for investigations and prosecutions of Bush Officials.
The Spanish have more balls than we do on this issue.
—
The Spanish have jurisdiction.
Glenn Greenwald has an excellent write up on this as well. So far Obama has not only protected the past administration but as well, he is protecting people in his own administration. My question is, what are people who committed torture still doing in the employ of our govt.? These are not good people whom we need to retain. They are war criminals. This is like complaining about the economic mess inhereited from bush but hiring all the same people who caused the problem to stay on. This is just bad policy and it is against our law. Torture isn’t something that only occurred in the past if people who committed it in the present are still part of your govt. These war and financial criminals should have been fired on day one. Instead they are close advisors to Obama. It will be interesting to see how this turns out.
Mike A.,
I agree. It’s put up or shut up.
“…the Obama Administration may actually seek to obstruct the investigation while preventing any special prosecutor from seeing the evidence in a domestic investigation.”
Mens rea?
Mike,
It’s good news period. I don’t care who enforces the ban on torture, it needs to be enforced.
I’d love for President Obama to handle this issue as well as he’s handled some others, but if we have to loose more face for people who knowingly broke US and international laws to be punished so be it.
My concern is that the politics between nations will trump justice.
If international jurisprudence prevails—without the Obama Administration’s full compliance—then Mr. Obama becomes a disgraced political coward complicit in war crimes.
Is there a Spanish word for “sayonara?”
Asta la bye bye?
This is actually very good news. The Obama administration has now been called out on the issue and will be forced to take a position. It’s about time.
The Spanish have more balls than we do on this issue. This is embarassing and I’m very disappointed that the Obama administration is apparently doing nothing about it. Talk about abrogation of responsibility. Those f*ckers (Bush admin. officials) belong in jail.
Is there a Spanish word for “sayonara?” As in, “sayonara war criminals?”
Well done. I hope someone figures that these are crimes against humanities for the benefit of profits for a few.
Isn’t that Nurenburg Defense a lot like that song Give me that Old Time Religion.
Libby has already been convicted for Just following Orders.
Nancy Grace get a whiff of this.