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Dr. J.'s Commentary: The Dick Cheney Defense

Submitted by BuzzFlash on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 2:00pm.

So Dick Cheney is going around the country justifying torture, (without any proof whatsoever, and anyway in terms of the law, that argument is irrelevant) saying how many hundreds of thousands of lives it saved, that the U.S. is, or at least was when he (ooops, he means Bush) was in power, really a nation with a Unitary Executive that can over-ride domestic law, the Constitution, and international law whenever the President thinks that that is justified for "reasons of national security." (Sorry Dick, but if you would only read Article II, which defines the Executive Branch, you would know that such a doctrine is not even distantly implied in it, but that's another story.) Furthermore, he charges that the bringing of any charges against folks who, for example, actually engaged in torture, even of the type not approved specifically by himself, is just pure politics.

That in itself is a funny charge to make (even if GOPers make it all the time). "Politics" is the process that all organizations from nations to PTAs use to resolve policy differences short of the use of force. Of course, Cheney seems only to understand force, but thank goodness the Obama Administration has chosen to at least look into the possibility of charging one or more persons with a crime or crimes connected with the use of torture under the previous administration. Why? Because they have adopted a different policy on torture. Starting an investigation is certainly better than picking up a suspect or two in the matter and just throwing them into Gitmo, isn't it? So let's hear it for politics and the examination of torture policy under the Cheney (oops, I mean the Bush) Presidency.

(Of course Cheney's "Unitary Executive" concept happens to be a really good argument for President Obama to use his power under that concept to just enact his version of national health care reform [one that hopefully would include a public option] without consulting Congress. Just do it, Barack. The security of the nation demands it. For at the rate the current for-profit insurance/drug industry "health care system" is running, the personal bankruptcies it causes will seem like small potatoes when it bankrupts the country. That is certainly a matter of national security, isn't it? Of course Cheney doesn't think in those terms. "National security" matters for him are those that are good for the oil/coal and arms industries and the political future of the GOP, not the future of the civil society of the nation. But that's another story.)

Anyway, so here is Cheney making these speeches, attacking the President, essentially accusing him of treason for dropping the nation's guard on "national security" as he sees it. And of course, how he sees it is the way it is, because for him and the rest of the Georgites, these matters are non-debatable. Most of the folks on our side have been interpreting Cheney's March Through the Willing Media as an offensive attack on Obama and his (equally black) Attorney General, Eric Holder, who did seem to be moving rather slowly on this one. However, it happens that Holder was a board member of the American Constitution Society, one of the most out-spoken of the national organization of lawyers against the Georgite, Cheney-led continuing campaign to destroy the Constitution and end the rule of law. I think that he, and likely Obama himself too, if not all of his advisors, was just waiting for the pressure to build to the point where they just "had to do it," the lily-livered, way-underqualified-for-the-job, Leon Panetta to the contrary notwithstanding.

I beg to differ on why Cheney is doing and going about just now. I don't think that it's about offense. I think it's about defense. On June 17, 1972, five men were arrested for a break-in at the Washington, DC headquarters of the Democratic National Committee. From the outset, there were rumors that they didn't just do it on their own, or at the behest of two mid-level Nixon White House operatives, E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy. With guilty pleas, in January 1973, they were all convicted on various fairly low-level crimes in connection with the operation. It seemed that that would have been the end of it. But then in March 1973, one of the convicted men, James McCord, wrote a letter to the presiding judge in the case, John Sirica, claiming that he had been urged/forced to plead guilty to cover up the involvement of higher ups in the Administration. And we all know what happened then. Judge Sirica re-opened the case. The word "-gate" became attached to virtually any political scandal that has occurred since that time. And, oh yes, Nixon was eventually forced to resign.

Well, dollars to donuts, Cheney is afraid of his own James McCord. Whether in ordinary crime (such as, say, investment banking fraud) or political crimes, such as Cheney's War on the Constitution, investigations starting out focusing on underlings sometimes can get higher up in the food chain, and sometimes they can reach to the top. Cheney knows very well that a criminal investigation of actual torturers, either CIA staffers or mercenaries, can start to go up the ladder: "Hey, I (A) was just following orders, and hey, the orders came from (B)" who then says "hey, my orders came from (C)," then, whaddaya know, "hey, my orders came from (D)" (and we all know who that would be: "D" for Dick). Cheney knows this possible pattern, perhaps better than anyone, because he was around the White House when Watergate was going down. Yes, if this investigation/possible prosecution really gets going, Cheney's own James McCord could be somewhere lying in the weeds.

So here's his defense:

1. I don't care what the law or the Constitution say, I say torture was needed.

2. I, I mean the President, had the authority to order it under our Unitary Presidency doctrine.

3. So what if that doctrine doesn't appear anywhere in the Constitution. Torture was OK, especially if it was carefully defined to be "not torture," because Justice Department lawyers said that the doctrine did exist, and therefore we could do what we wanted to. (That's a particularly good one, the "lawyers" one, as if that would make everything OK. Half the men in the room when at the Wannsee Palace just south of Berlin on January 20, 1942, the "Final Solution" for the "Jewish Question," ordered by Hitler and transmitted by Heydrich was set in motion, were lawyers.)

4. It doesn't matter that the DOJ lawyers, people such as Yoo and Bybee, were acting on our orders, transmitted to them by another lawyer, Addington. They gave the official word of the DOJ.

5. Just so you know, to repeat myself, we don't admit that we broke the law and violated the Constitution. And even if we did, it was in defense of "national security," which makes everything alright.

Finally, let's say that it were to get to Cheney, and that his defense failed on its merits (actually there aren't any). Well, then he's got the "negative pre-trial publicity" argument. Tons of it has been created. The difference here is just wild. Usually negative pre-trial publicity is created by one segment of the media or another or a Congressional committee (as in the Iran-Contra case) or a stupid prosecutor. Here it is being created by Cheney himself, who in essence is saying "yes, I did it and I'm right, Right, and proud." Dick Cheney may be clever and he may be evil. But dumb he sure ain't.

Steven Jonas, MD, MPH is a Professor of Preventive Medicine at Stony Brook University (NY) and author/co-author/editor of 30 books. In addition to being a Columnist for BuzzFlash, Dr. Jonas is also a Contributing Author for TPJmagazine; a Featured Writer for Dandelion Salad; a Special Contributing Editor for Cyrano's Journal Online; a Contributing Columnist for the Project for the Old American Century (POAC); and a Contributor to The Planetary Movement.

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Times, Post and media much more than merely "willing"....

Submitted by veritas on Tue, 09/15/2009 - 1:47am.

" Most of the folks on our side have been interpreting Cheney's March Through the Willing Media as an offensive attack on Obama and his (equally black) Attorney General..." 

   Well stated, except that the NY Times and WashPost were not merely "Willing" media... they were COMPLICIT  media.  Both the Times & Post  KNEW that election 2000 was stolen... THEY were IN on the fix, the NEW DISENFRANCHISEMENT that  MOVED THE American  CIVIL RIGHTS clock  BACKWARDS 35 years.    

   Both the Times and Post  KNEW that the Cheney-Georgite duo DID NOTHING to investigate the Al Qaida bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen in October 2000...  needless to say, Bush & Cheney taking all their ranch vacation-time after being inaugurated in Jan. 2001 rolled out a big, plush red carpet for Al Qaida to give a major suicide bombing attack on American targets a new try.   

    The Post & Times KNEW damn well that TAX CUTS and DEREGULATION led to the Savings & Loan crisis, and the  Bush-1 Recession...    and that Timmy McVeigh blew up the OKC government building in 1995, even as Clinton (following the Ross Perot "pay down the Bush deficits" plan) was dragging America OUT of the Bush-1 Recession  (which of course the  demagogue  hate-radio  Timmy McVeigh  inciters out there blamed, not on Bush's Tax-cuts for rich &  Phil Gramm's DEREGULATION, but instead on the Democrats and "TOO MUCH regulations")  

    The Times'  & Post's abhorant "Whitewater,"  "Wen Ho Lee,"  "Lincoln Bedroom,"  "White House trashing,"  and other assorted FAKE-scandals   'reporting' was so voluminous, that Conason & Lyons, in their book, "The Hunting of the President" took twenty-five pages of  mostly single-line sourcing (footnotes) to catch it all! 

     In both the Wen Ho Lee stories, AND the false "White House Trashing" scandal,  the Times & Post were perfectly willing to let careers &  reputations - if not physical bodies -   hang for the sake of a good right-wing lynch-mob (faux) scandal.

 

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Cheney missed some important lessons during Vietnam.

Submitted by Tahoe Progressive on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 3:28pm.

If Cheney had not been so busy during the late 1960s, maybe he would have learned some things. If he had not been able to get his 5 draft deferments, and had gone into the Army and joined the fight in Vietnam, just maybe he would have learned why torture is illegal.

Besides the fact that 'we' executed Japanese soldiers after WWII for torturing Americans, just maybe he would understand why we don't do things to other countries soldiers that we don't want done to our GIs.

Personal experience is a great teacher. Most of my friends who participated in Vietnam are now against war unless it's waged as a last resort. Cheney missed that lesson while doing graduate work at U of Chicago. Too bad for the rest of the world.

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OBAMA TSUNAMI

Submitted by SWINNEY on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 3:09pm.

clarence swinney

OBAMA TSUNAMI

I ACCEPT PRAISETIQUES NOT CRITIQUES
ANY RESPOSE IS APPRECIATED IF ONE USES FACTS-NUMBERS.
BLARNEY BLABBER GENERALIZATIONS NOT READ.

“CONSERVATIVE” IDEOLOGY GAVE US THE CURRENT “GREAT” RECESSION SAME AS IT DID IN “GREAT” DEPRESSION

LET WALL STREET GAMBLERS PLAY WITH LOADED DICE AND MARKED CARDS

FREE THE FREAK MARKET

LET RICH GET UTRA RICH IT WILL TRICKLE DOWN TO MIDDLE CLASS

FROM 1946 TO REAGAN WAS --–T HE GREAT MIDDLE CLASS YEARS---
EACH PERCENTILE INCREASED, ALMOST EVENLY, IN WEALTH AND INCOME.
ECONOMISTS CALLED IT A PICKET FENCE DISTRIBUTION.

REAGAN POLICIES BEGAN UPWARD SHIFT (ONLY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SHIFT AN SH-T IS ONE LETTER)
IT BECAME A STEP LADDER DISTRIBUTION. EACH STEP GAINED A LITTLE AND TOP STEP(10%) WENT INTO OUTER SPACE.
HIS HUGE TAX “CUTS” FOR WEALTHY (60% CUT).
HIS HUGE TAX “INCREASES” ON THE MIDDLE CLASS (PAYROLL TAX INCREASE WAS LARGEST IN HISTORY –TAX ON 50% OF SOCIAL SECURITY INCOME--5 CENTS ON GAS)
HIS ENORMOUS INCREASE IN MILITARY SPENDING ENRICHED THE RICH STOCKHOLDERS OF DEFENSE BUSINESSES.

REAGAN INCREASED SPENDING BY 80% AND DEBT BY 170%.
Do not try usual conservative spin—“it was congress”.
Reagan 8 budgets spent more than prior 50 years.
He submitted 8 for over 7000b. 1930-1980 spent 6066b—congress returned 8 budgets to Reagan with fewer dollars in total than he had submitted to it.
Go ahead try usual conservative spin—“real” inflation adjusted dollars—no work senor—
From 1948 to 1989 Reagan spent 2.7 dollars in 8 for each “real” dollar spent in other 32 years. Comprehendez amigo? Factoids hurt? Si!
Try usual Heritage spin—Reagan tax cuts paid their way—huh! From 1983 to 1989 federal revenues increased from 599b to 990b. 391b increase. Correct. But-Reagan tax cuts were income tax cuts therefore it seems logical you measure income tax revenue increase.
319b increase. 201b was increase in payroll tax revenue from Reagan huge increase in it.
50b in excise tax increase partial from gas tax. 251b of 391b. Durn! That leaves 140b increase in income tax revenues. My math professor Dr. Hook taught me 140 in is smaller than 750 out. Factoids are miserable things.

GEORGE W. BUSH DID MORE DAMAGE THAN REAGAN.

INCREASED FEDERAL SPENDING BY 118%--DEBT BY 100%
CUT TAXES FOR TOP 2.7% OR 4 TIMES AS MUCH AS BOTTOM 80%
HIS 1700 BILLION IN TAX CUTS WERE IN THE 5000B HE BORROWED.
BUSH LED US INTO TWO AWFUL SLAUGHTERAMAS. HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT PEOPLE WERE KILLED. TENS OF THOUSANDS OF LITTLE KIDS WILL BE MAIMED FOR THE REMAINDER OF THEIR LIVES. TENS OF THOUSANDS OF WIDOWS HAVE NO WORKER TO SUPPORT THEM.
EVER KNOW AN AMERICAN SO-CALLED CHRISTIAN TO WEEP OVER THOSE HORRORS?
MILLIONS OF TEARS SHED OVER HOLOCAUST. NOT THIS ONE.

HE CREATED NET NEW JOBS AT 3000 PER MONTH. HORRIBLE COMPARED TO 218,000 AND 237,000 THE CARTER-CLINTON RECORDS.

THE WORLD WARNED NOT TO INVADE IRAQ.
BUSH FATHER SAID DO NOT DO IT
LEADERSHIP OF EACH MAJOR RELIGION (EXCEPT SOUTHERN BAPTIST) IN AMERICA SAID DO NOT DO IT.
POLLS IN MAJOR NATIONS SAID DO NOT DO IT.
EXCEPTIONS WERE THREE--ISRAEL AS EXPECTED-POLAND-AUSTRALIA

CHENEY TOLD RUMSFELD THE DAY AFTER 2001 INAUGURATION “PREPARE TO INVADE IRAQ”. EQUIPMENT WAS MOVED INTO KUWAIT FAR BEFORE BUSH “CHEERFUL” ANNOUNCMENT WE WERE INVADING IRAQ TO FULFILL HIS STATEMENT TO HIS BIOGRAPHER-- “I WILL NEED A WAR TO BE A SUCCESSFUL PRESIDENT”.

WALL STREET WAS ALLOWED UNRESTRICTED WIDE-OPEN GAMBLING. IT WAS UNPRODUCTIVE. NO JOBS WERE CREATED. IT WAS SIMPLY THE RICH GAMBLING TO GET RICHER. BETTING MONEY AGAINST MONEY. ROULETTE WHEEL TYPE GAMBLING.
I BET ON RED YOU BET ON BLACK.

THE HOUSING INDUSTRY SUSTAINED GDP GROWTH BUT WASTED CAPITAL-LABOR-MATERIALS TO CONSTRUCT HOMES TOO LARGE-TOO EXPENSIVE FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS INCOME. FEDERAL RESERVE (GREENSPAN) INCREASED THE TOTAL MONEY SUPPLY IN 5 YEARS BY TWICE AS MUCH AS INCREASE OVER PRIOR TEN YEARS.
GREENSPAN GAVE CLINTON A 6.5% INTEREST RATE AND BUSH A 1%.
THIS ENCOURAGED BANKS TO BORROW MAX FROM FEDERAL RESERVE.
PLENTY MONEY PLUS LOW INTEREST=DISASTER
LOCAL BANKS WERE ALLOWED TO TRADE AND INVEST IN WALL STREET.
COURTESY OF PHIL GRAMN, REPUBLICANS IN CONGRESS, PLUS PRESIDENT CLINTON WHO APPROVED ELIMINATION OF SMOOT-HAWLEY RESTRICTIONS ON LOCAL BANKS.
IT KEPT BANKS FROM GAMBLERS ON WALL STREET AS IN 1920S.
WE DID NOT LEARN FROM CHANGING SAVINGS AND LOANS FROM LOCAL OWNERSHIP TO WALL STREET GAMBLERS OWNERSHIP AND MICHAEL MILKEN LED RAIDS ON CORPORATIONS.
A FEEDING FRENZY TOOK PLACE ON HOME MORTGAGES, WHICH WERE SOLD VIA SECURITIES AS HIGH GRADE INVESTMENTS TO UNSUSPECTING BUYERS LIKE FOREIGN NATIONS, STATES, CITIES AND INDIVIDUALS. HOME OWNERS WERE ENCOURGED TO REFINANCE AND TAKE CASH TO BUILD SWIMMING POOLS, VACATIONS ETC. PRIME EXAMPLE IS WHERE $500,000 MORTGAGE WAS REFINACED AT $700,000. MORTGAGE FIRM TOOK BIG CHUNK OF THE $200,000.
CRAAAASH. HOME OWNER NOW HAS $700,00 MORTAGE ON $400,000 VALUE HOME.
FORECLOSURE HERE I COME. SPECULATORS GOT INTO THE FRENZY. BOUGHT HOMES FOR NO DOWN PAYMENT AND SMALL MONTHLY PAYMENTS BASED ON SELLING IN TWO YEARS AT HUGE PROFIT. ZAP. FORECLOSURE. IN JANUARY 2008 THE TOTAL FORCLOSURES TO DATE WERE 23% ON SPECULATION PURCHASED HOMES.
LARGE DEVELOPMENT FIRMS GOT LOW LOW INTEREST MONEY TO BUILD MANSIONS NOT AFFORDABLE HOMES FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS. THEY GOT RICH. IN CALIFORNIA A DEVELOPER BUILT A DEVELOPMENT OF $700,00 HOMES AND IN ANOTHER AREA BUILD EXACT SAME BLUEPRINT FOR $500,000. IF HE MADE $100,00 ON A $400,000 HOME HOW MUCH ON A $700,00 HOME. HE IS BEING SUED BY BUYERS OF $700,000 HOMES.

THE HOUSING FRENZY WAS BASED ON ONE ASSUMPTION. A LOGICAL ONE BASED ON HISTORY. HOUSING HAS ALWAYS APPRECIATED IN VALUE. ALWAYS IN HISTORY.
HISTORY IS FALLIBLE.

ONE HEDGE FUND (GAMBLING) MANAGER MADE 2000 MILLION IN ONE YEAR.
TWO MADE 1000 MILLION IN ONE YEAR.
TAXED AT 15% RATE.

THIS GAMBLING GREED FRENZY COST THE MIDDLE CLASS IN THE REDUCED VALUE OF THEIR HOME AFTER THE BIG CRASH. THE VALUE DECLINE OF MY HOME WAS 15%.

FROM 1981 TO 2008 IT WAS A DISASTER FOR WORKING PEOPLE AND BONANZA FOR GAMBLING PEOPLE.

WHY DID NOT CEO’S INCREASE INCOME OF THEIR WORKERS?
IN ONE YEAR THE CEO’S MADE 550 TIMES THE PAY OF THE AVERAGE WAGE IN THEIR BUSINESSES. REMEMBER THE GOOD OLD MIDDLE CLASS DAYS WHEN IT WAS 40 TIMES.

IT IS NON—DEBATABLE. 1981 TO 2008 WAS ENRICH RICH DITCH THE REST.

SINCE 1980 HERE IS A BRIEF

20 YEARS=3 SO CALLED CONSERVATIVE PRESIDENTS
18 YEARS=SO CALLED CONSERVATIVE SENATE
12 YEARS=SO CALLED HOUSE
6 YEARS=TOTAL GOVERNMENT CONTROL BY SO CALLED CONSERVATIVES
2 TERRIBLE ILLEGAL WARS
TRANSFER OF JOBS TO CHINA AS WE COVERED OUR OVER-SPENDING BY THEIR LOANS
LOSS OF OUR JOB PRODUCING MANUFACTURING BASE--

HERE ARE THE RESULTS

600B SPENDING TO 4000B
1000B OF DEBT TO 11,000 +
23M NET NEW JOBS
12 YEARS OF CARTER + CLINTON GOT 33M

8 YEARS OF THE MOST SCURRILOUS ADMINISTRATION IN HISTORY PER HAYNES JOHNSON IN --PRESIDENT REAGAN=SLEEPWALKING THROUGH HISTORY
138 CHARGED WITH CRIMES WAS MORE THAN GRAND TOTAL SINCE 1900
MOST OF THEM WERE CHARGED IN CRIMES INVOLVING MONEY.

THE NUMBERS ARE AVAILABLE. THE HISTORY IS VERY CLEAR.

THE GREAT MIDDLE CLASS GOT THE GREAT BIG SHAFTING.

THE STRUGGLING RICH BECAME THE ULTRA-RICH

SMASHED WALL STREET
SMASHED ECONOMY
SMASHED HOUSING
SMASHED CHILDRENS FUTURE WITH DEBT
SMASHED WORKERS INCOME
SMASHED AMERICAS REPUTATION WORLDWIDE
STARTED THE DECLINE OF THE AMERICAN EMPIRE LIKE ROME-SPAIN-HOLLAND-BRITAIN

DEMOCRATS HISTORY OF BUILDING GOOD THINGS FOR ALL AMERICANS

CONSERVATIVE HISTORY OF FIGHTING THOSE GOOD THINGS

WHY DO YOU SEND CONSERVATIVES BACK TO WASHINGTON?

I AM OLD AND UGLY AND I APPROVED THIS MESSAGE OF DELIVERANCE
FROM CONSERVATIVE FALSEHOODS

I ASK ONLY IF I AM WRONG GIVE ME FACTS AND I WILL CORRECT.

I ERR BUT I DO NOT WRITE WITH INTENT TO DECEIVE

8-26-09 USA TODAY—CBO AND CEA PROJECT DEFICITS OF 9 TRILLION OVER NEXT TEN YEARS. REPUBLICANS, PER USUAL, JUMP ON OBAMA CASE.

REP. BOEHNER “TODAY’S REPORTS CONFIRM WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE HAS BEEN TRYING TO HIDE.
THE DEMOCRATS OUT-OF–CONTROL SPENDING BINGE IS BURYING OUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN UNDER A MOUNTAIN OF UNSUSTAINABLE DEBT”.

This is so stupid it is a good laugh. He took us on a Spend-Borrow binge from 1000B of debt to 11,000B. He took us on a spend binge from 600B to 4000B.
These guys have one simple trait—deceive—distract from truth—attack attack

Yes! No question. It is going to take much Spend-Tax-Borrow for years to correct the mess created in prior twenty years of conservative control.

How easy the people forget the Balanced Budgets=Surpluses under Clinton and 8 good years.

WOW—8 YEARS=5000B + INCREASE IN DEBT UNDER BOEHNER-BUSH

1830B IN CLINTON LAST YEAR OF SPENDING TO 4000B UNDER BUSH LAST YEAR OF SPENDING

SPENDERS + DEBTORS + LIARS = CONSERVATIVES

ONE MAJOR TRUTH—IF A CONSERVATIVE LEADER SAYS IT --IT IS PART TRUE.

NEVER TRUST A CONSERVATIVE IN WASHINGTON. NEVER. NEVER. NEVER

cswinney2@triad.rr.com

political historian since 1991
lifeaholics of America
author-Lifeaholic-Workaholic to Lifeaholic Success
unpublished
ALL AMERICAN PARTY—how the democrats built a Great Middle Class only to watch conservatives attempt to destroy it and begin the dissolution of the Great American Empire on the same trend line as Rome-Spain-Holland-Britain.

Just think—I voted for Nixon-Carter-Reagan twice-Bush I-then Clinton and Obama
I always voted the man not the party. I am registered I.

_______
Thanks. Hope it works.I need simple things.

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