Remember rendition? Remember when lefties were against it? You know, during the Bush Years...
Now? During the Obama Years? Not so much:
The Obama administration will continue the Bush administration’s practice of sending terror suspects to third countries for detention and interrogation, but will monitor their treatment to insure they are not tortured, administration officials said on Monday.
Oh goody! Spankings!
The administration officials, who announced the changes on condition that they not be identified, said that unlike the Bush administration, they would give the State Department a larger role in assuring that transferred detainees would not be abused.
Because, as we all know, nothing scares a sadistic Middle Eastern jailer like a visit from the State Department.
“The emphasis will be on insuring that individuals will not face torture if they are sent over overseas,” said one administration official, adding that no detainees will be sent to countries that are known to conduct abusive interrogations.
Wait a second. If you aren't going to use interrogation techniques expressly prohibited in the United States, why would you send prisoners to foreign countries in the first place? Wasn't that the whole point to rendition? To get the prisoners beyond the long arm of U.S. law?
So, any guesses as to what is really going on here?
Besides "Change", this is...
Dennis I guess you don't remember conservatives shrieking in terror and wetting their boots a few months ago at the thought of terrorist suspects coming to the United States.
Posted by: markg8 | August 24, 2009 at 04:11 PM
I see. So that makes it OK.
How very Republican of you.
Posted by: Dennis the Peasant | August 24, 2009 at 04:15 PM
It's fun watching embrace so much of what George W. Bush and Dick Cheney were about.
Posted by: Dennis the Peasant | August 24, 2009 at 04:17 PM
I have no problem with suspects being sent abroad anymore than I have with the Pakistanis or Afghanis turning Bin Laden over to US authorities if they capture him. And they'd better not turn him over to the Scots.
Posted by: markg8 | August 24, 2009 at 04:32 PM
As long as no one gets out the Comfy Pillows, I can retain my pretension of moral superiority.
Posted by: smitty | August 24, 2009 at 04:50 PM
The chickenhawk version of torture,Mark is for it as long as he doesn't have to do it.
Posted by: PeterUK | August 24, 2009 at 06:32 PM
Yes - I heard all about the torture today. Apparently the CIA actually threatened suspected terrorists. They seemingly didn't DO anything to them, but they threatened them. Probably disturbed their auras and chakras and such.
You gotta fucking be kidding me.
Posted by: Mike C. | August 24, 2009 at 06:40 PM
Panetta to Staff: As Director in 2009, my primary interest-when it comes to a program that no longer exists-is to stand up for those officers who did what their country asked and who followed the legal guidance they were given. That is the President's position, too.
Attorney General Holder: Names Prosecutor to Probe CIA Abuse Allegations
-------------------------------------
The President's position is to move on except as it applies to exposing CIA abusers (thanks Nancy Pelosi!).
Posted by: Guesst | August 24, 2009 at 07:14 PM
The President's position is to move on...
All of Obama's positions have expiration dates. In that regards, he is a short term President.
Posted by: JeffS | August 24, 2009 at 07:25 PM
Remembering what the CIA did to Bush,this should work out well for Obama.
Posted by: PeterUK | August 24, 2009 at 07:44 PM
Remembering what the CIA did to Bush, pass the popcorn, karma is fun to watch.
Posted by: richard mcenroe | August 24, 2009 at 08:11 PM
This strikes me more as Obama throwing a bit of red meat to the left, just to assure them that he's still 'one of them'.
Posted by: Dennis the Peasant | August 24, 2009 at 08:14 PM
Dennis,I agree,but this piece of red meat still has the teeth and claws attached. What is the betting they have all the missing Obama records on file somewhere. The CIA doesn't have a compliant US media to do their dirty work this time,but there is always the foreign press.
Posted by: PeterUK | August 24, 2009 at 08:21 PM
So your a birther Peter? Tell me again why you keep this moron around Dennis.
Posted by: markg8 | August 24, 2009 at 08:37 PM
Releasing terrorists and arresting CIA agents is going to be embarrassing for Barack Hussein Obama.
Posted by: PeterUK | August 24, 2009 at 08:37 PM
Releasing terrorists didn't seem to hurt Bush but by then there wasn't much more damage he could do to his reputation or our judicial system.
Posted by: markg8 | August 24, 2009 at 08:44 PM
It's a shame all these people ain't smart like the reptile, Dennis...
Posted by: richard mcenroe | August 24, 2009 at 08:55 PM
Mark-
The same reason I keep you around.
Posted by: Dennis the Peasant | August 24, 2009 at 09:03 PM
Touche!
Posted by: Eric Blair | August 24, 2009 at 11:11 PM
It's stranger than truth! Read:
http://tinyurl.com/mndxcd
Posted by: Jon | August 25, 2009 at 02:57 AM
OK Lefties, break out your strawman arguments that have nothing to do with the point, but rather distract from it.
Rendition for Bush = BAD
Rendition for Obama = Bush is BAD
Yet rendition continues...
Posted by: Freedom Now | August 25, 2009 at 05:21 AM
Mark you dolt,you don't mind if I call you dolt? Mark is so impersonal. You should expand your very limited horizons. stop thinking in sound bites. You elected a president without looking at his CV,all else flows from that.Obama is in over his head so far that he is standing on the bottom.
It is insane for a man who based his career on anonymity to attack an organisation dedicated to unravelling and collating secrets.
As for me being here,it is an amusement.but you,I don't think you exist without it.
Posted by: PeterUK | August 25, 2009 at 06:36 AM
I think Peter has a point. All sorts of things are going to start surfacing about Obama now that he's okay'd those investigations. Investigations that were supposedly put to bed 6 years ago.
So much for 'not looking back'.
Posted by: Eric Blair | August 25, 2009 at 08:37 AM
Eric. The agents of the CIA are not the types to go without a little insurance in any venture where there is any come back. Those lower down are going to point a finger are those above them,the higher it gets,the nearer to Obama it gets.
Posted by: PeterUK | August 25, 2009 at 09:03 AM
I understand Glenn Greenwald volunteered to have some of those bronzed, earthy young men renditioned to his place...
Posted by: richard mcenroe | August 25, 2009 at 11:06 AM
You guys are really freaking out aren't you?
Posted by: markg8 | August 25, 2009 at 11:16 AM
What goes around comes around.The Thousand Year Obama Reich will go the way of all such things.Then the current regime will answer for its actions. Brilliant strategy you have there.
Posted by: PeterUK | August 25, 2009 at 12:05 PM
You'll be dead before Obama leaves office Pete. It might as well be 1000 years for you.
Posted by: markg8 | August 25, 2009 at 03:19 PM
Not really Mark. It's your country he's buggering up. But look on the bright side,is by some chance he does two terms you will be in your "Complete Life System",Whoops!
Posted by: PeterUK | August 25, 2009 at 03:57 PM
Frankly Petey I'm surprised NHS hasn't turned you into soylent green by now. It's not like you're Stephen Hawking or anything.
Posted by: markg8 | August 25, 2009 at 09:20 PM
Trouble is for you Mark,I'm world class at what I do,and you?
Posted by: PeterUK | August 26, 2009 at 06:34 AM
What exactly is it that you do Peter?
Posted by: markg8 | August 26, 2009 at 11:28 AM