Johnsen’s withdrawal is another blow for civil libertarians who saw her as an ally in an Administration that has adopted many Bush terrorism policies. Democrats like Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) expressed concern over Johnsen’s belief that torture is a war crime and there should have been investigations of potential crimes in the Bush Administration.
Thus, with Democrats in charge of the Senate, a brilliant scholar has been blocked because she had the audacity to speak out against torture and to demand that we fulfill our treaty obligations. In the meantime, Solicitor General Elena Kagan who supports the Bush policies is a candidate for the Supreme Court.
Obviously, if Obama cared deeply about the issue or this nominee, there would have been a confirmation in this case. For many liberals, there appears to be a sign up in this Administration and in the Democrat-controlled Congress warning “Civil Libertarians Need Not Apply.”
This is a disgraceful conclusion for this country, which would have benefitted greatly from Johnsen’s confirmation.
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