Bybee lobbies Nevada congressional delegation ‘to tell his side of the story.’
Bybee lobbies Nevada congressional delegation ‘to tell his side of the story.’
The Las Vegas Sun reports that torture architect — and 9th Circuit appellate judge — Jay Bybee has reached out to members of Nevada’s congressional delegation “to tell his side of the story.” Reps. Dina Titus (D-NV) and Shelley Berkley (D-NV) have both been contacted by representatives of Bybee:
Titus said Wednesday that no meeting has been scheduled. But she said she hopes to hear Bybee out — and to share her concerns.
“I’d like to hear from him if he thinks he made the right decision interpreting the law and doing the job as he saw it defined,” Titus said Wednesday. “But I also will not hesitate to make it clear to him that I absolutely disagree with his interpretation. The United States is not a country of torture.” […]
Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley’s office was also contacted by Bybee’s representative in April. Berkley’s spokesman said the two have not met, and he was unsure whether they would.
“This was torture, in her mind,” spokesman David Cherry said. “I don’t know if there’s anything he could say to her at this point that would change her thinking.”
While Bybee is interested in talking to Nevada’s delegation, he refuses to respond to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy’s (D-VT) invitation to give testimony before the committee. A New York Times editorial today again calls for the impeachment of Bybee. “The memos he wrote or signed made it clear that he was not fit to make judgments about the law and the Constitution,” the NYT writes. “Congress should remove him.”
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He’d probably have better luck lobbying spineless Harry Reid…
May 7th, 2009 at 10:23 amWhy Nevada?
His pitch: what happens in the CIA stays in the CIA.
May 7th, 2009 at 10:27 amWhy doesn’t he just have the Republican insurgency capture Rep. Titus? They can torture her until she tells Bybee’s side of the story.
May 7th, 2009 at 10:27 amWhy is everyone so concerned with the semantics of torture? It has been defined in legal documents, court records and treaties worldwide. Now people who are guilty are trying to split hairs on its definition – since when can criminals take that privilege?
May 7th, 2009 at 10:30 amBybee is one of the architects of torture in this country. By putting his name on these legal decisions he provided cover for those who ordered others to torture and confused what should be a clear ethical question for those who did torture. I don’t think that ignorance is any defense for a crime against humanity, but surely Bybee’s memos played a role in convincing the rank and file CIA members who were ordered to torture that it was necessary and legal to do so. Far from standing by while torture happened, Bybee is an instigator of it. In a just world he would be facing the death penalty for his heinous crimes.
May 7th, 2009 at 10:31 amGood point Marie. The Nazis tried that at Nuremberg. It didn’t work then either.
May 7th, 2009 at 10:32 amI completely understand the idea of waiting to appoint an independent prosecutor so that more information can come out and this has been effective. Every day we learn a little bit more about who was involved and what was approved and once an investigation is officially announced, this steady stream of info will surely dry up. That aside I worry that the longer they wait, the more time that former Bushies have to “lobby” behind the scenes and play on the governments worries of the perception of politics being involved. The neocons are masters of propaganda and controlling their message and I believe that the time has definitely come for AG Holder to show his hand. Maybe they’re waiting for the release of the photos this month and to see where public opinion falls but I don’t think that public opinion should matter one lick in this. If laws were broken, and it looks like there is plenty of evidence to demand an independent prosecutor, then shit or get off the pot allready.
May 7th, 2009 at 10:33 amAlong with signing ThinkProgress’ petition, write to Congress and urge your lawmakers to begin impeachment proceedings against Bybee here:
http://www.commoncause.org/siteapps/advocacy/ActionItem.aspx?c=dkLNK1MQIwG&b=5115995
May 7th, 2009 at 10:36 amIt’s pretty obvious that, by talking with Nevada congressional delegates, Bybee’s lobbyists have gone to Las Vegas to gamble away their political capital.
Hopefully, the House wins.
May 7th, 2009 at 10:40 amWhat a coward! Bybee won’t even respond to Leahy’s request, but he wants some of his “friends” to speak on his behalf.
It’s just a matter of time before the premier of Bye Bye Bybee.
PEACE
May 7th, 2009 at 10:42 amMaybe Bybee can get his mommy to write him a note explaining “The dog ate my ethics.”
PEACE
May 7th, 2009 at 10:44 amAndrew McCarthy explained his position perfectly in his letter to Attorney General Holder, refusing to take part in a sham.
And look into our governments position on the possible torture of a man named
John Demjanjuk of Cleveland if you want an example of extreme inconsistency.
I’m urging my lawmakers to wake up and remember their oath to protect the safety of the citizens of the United States!
May 7th, 2009 at 10:47 amBybee must be impeached.
We need consequences for these jokers who used their law degrees to subvert long standing rules and ethics.
No excuses, no lingering, no flip flopping.
Impeach Bybee’s tortured ass now!
May 7th, 2009 at 10:52 amI think unless Bybee steps down, impeachment and being dis-barred are a given. That said, the man deserves a long stint in a federal prison for his part in justifying the Cheney Torure Program (probably something more “permanent” if the Hague gets involved) and I believe that this is the reason for Bybees full court press behind the scenes. DC protects it’s own despite all people supposedly being EQUAL in the eye of US law. Cheney bloviating his pride of war crimes daily, folks like Bybee, Rummy’s boytoy and many Bush hold-overs in the Justice Dept are feverishly trying to make sure that no one sees the inside of a prison cell in this whole mess. No one in DC seems to grasp that if these war criminals are given nothing more than a slap on the wrist for what they did the NOTHING will change. Either in the public’s perception of the fairness of US law or the International opinion of our judicial system (which until not long ago was a shining example to aspire to). What incentive will there be for the next Cheney or Rumsfeld to abide by the laws of our Nation? Federal Prison for all involved, and I mean right on down to the CIA grunts, is the absolute LEAST of punishments for these crimes. The CIA has become another entity that is somehow above our laws? Those at the top like Cheney, Rummy, Wolfie, Ashcroft should ALL swing from the gallows if we are to even try to prevent this shit from happening again! I don’t feel that this would be extreme by any means. This is America for Christs sakes! WE SHOULD NEITHER DEFEND WAR CRIMES, SWEEP THEM UNDER THE RUG OR CODDLE THOSE WHO APPROVED IT! ESPECIALLY WHEN APPROVED BY THE F@CKING PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT! These men consider themselves untouchable and THAT is a major part of what is wrong with the United States Government!
May 7th, 2009 at 10:56 amWe have long standing rules and ethics that support our President putting the safety of American citizens first.
There are no policies as to how to treat alien enemy combatants, thats why the justice department is holding a conference to supposedly come up with these policies.
It would have been immoral and unethical to NOT waterboard captured enemy combatants who insinuated there was another attack on the way.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:00 amWhy is everyone so focused on the torture memo authors? While they are clearly criminals, I don’t understand why the focus isn’t on prosecuting Bush, Cheney, et al.
It’s like ignoring the murderer in favor of going after the guy who told the murderer maybe murder wasn’t such a bad idea.
Bush, Cheney and co. are the ones who authorized and ordered torture. They were the ones calling the shots. They need to be in jail.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:00 amAmazing that Bybee even thinks he has a leg to stand on. He’s toast, he’s lucky that he hasn’t been arrested for conspiracy to commit torture. Not to mention his equally infamous support of Bush’s illegal invasion of Iraq.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:04 am#14..P.A..Great post..Thank you….Blessings
May 7th, 2009 at 11:05 amRemember, Bybee: I dont recall
May 7th, 2009 at 11:06 amReally? Too bad Ronald Reagan isn’t around to argue that point with you.
U.S. signs UN convention against torture
May 7th, 2009 at 11:07 amBybee is no judge and there is no precedent for his irrational argument/semamtics, he was a yes man lawyer doing what the King wanted.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:10 amRomartin16985 Says: There are no policies as to how to treat alien enemy combatants,
May I ask where you got such information?
May 7th, 2009 at 11:12 amIf Bybee et al thought there was some gray area about waterboarding or any other torture technique, why didn’t they initiate a public debate instead of creating justification in the shadows and away from public scrutiny?
Rhetorical question, of course.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:21 amLike all right-wing dipsh!ts, he just makes it up as he goes along.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:22 amDear Sen. Leahey,
“Invite” is such an ugly and squishy term.
Please make the communication clearer. “Subpoena” is a nice word.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:23 amRomartin16985 Says:
There are no policies as to how to treat alien enemy combatants…
__________
ALIEN???
Oh My GAWD…
Does this mean Mars has FINALLY invaded?
May 7th, 2009 at 11:25 amHuh?!! You obviously have NO idea what morals or ethics are. Or that the reason we sign treaties banning torture is to protect US Soldiers. Guess you think it is perfectly alright for the soldiers to be tortured as well? Moron.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:26 amI would have thought in the time since last they were banned, those idiots over at the Privacy Center would have spent the time trying to learn how to post comments of interest…
May 7th, 2009 at 11:33 amSo why is he sucking up to the legislators who represent the state of Nevada? Could it be the legalized prostitution he’s angling on? After all, he prostituted himself so well for the BushitCo regime, you know he’s qualified…
May 7th, 2009 at 11:36 amI think your missing the point — people, even you, will admit to things they did not do, or planning on doing, to get such treatment to stop. This led to many false leads wasting agents time and money. The fact is we had intelligence information from many countries involving attacks on America before 911 which did not involve such tactics as you prescribe. Remember 24 is a fictional TV show.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:37 amThis comment is exactly why the issue of torture as practiced by Bushco must be investigated and prosecuted.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:44 amRomartin16985 poorly tries to justify war crimes.
“We have long standing rules and ethics that support our President putting the safety of American citizens first.”
We also have long standing LAWS against torture. I don’t buy this “enemy combatant” bullshit anymore than I buy the falacy that what was being done was aimed at protecting America. The FBI clearly is on the record stating that we were gaining actionable intelligence through standard interrogation practices. Romartin’s lame contention that detainees had details on a pending attack is false on several fronts. First off these men were in American custody for months before they were tortured (the actual OLC memos giving the go-ahead came even months after this began). The FBI got anything out of them that they had and any knowlege of a pending attack (ala “24″) would have been months old by that time. Romartin is in denial of the fact that these men were waterboarded scores of times in just one month. This alone passes the classification of intent to do harm and in no way could be accepted as a successful technique. The Bush Administration had evidence destroyed, dissenting legal opinions ignored, low-end inerrogators thrown under the bus when exposed(Abu Graib) and did everything that they could to hide their torture program from the light of day. They knew full well that what they planned and approved was illegal but felt that by having they’re loyal lawyers willing and able to justify their actions that whatever they wanted to do would be legal. No Romartin, it is looking more and more that the tortures were done in order to obtain confessions that would point to Iraq and Hussein being involved somehow with 9/11. They knew that coerced intel would be inadmissible in court. They knew full well that intel obtained through coertion would not be reliable but they allready knew what they wanted these men to say. They tortured them until they agreed and it gave Bush and Cheney a “viable” reason to keep Americans in fear and justify going into Iraq. It appears that Dick Cheney and the neocons were so hell bent on going into Iraq weel before 2001 that they would gladly go to any extreme to gain that prize. War crimes commited, an unending and illegal conflict rages on, thousands of lives lost, trillions of borrowed dollars flushed away, our reputation all but permanently damaged and what did it all get us Romartin? Those lives of American soldiers are lost forever, bin Laden still walks the earth, the Middle East is a worse clusterf@ck than when we went in and our economy and international reputation hobbled. But Dick Cheney got his war, Haliburton got richer, sky high oil prices made everyone from Bush buddies in Saudi Arabia, Texas and Alaska much richer. Bush Sr’s friends at Blackwater made more money than they could have ever dreamed. Who cares if they broke US and international laws to get there? I do for one and I am far from alone. This two sides to the story is bull shit. Like when the MSM considers being “fair and balanced” giving liars equal time as easily proven facts this is pretty cut and dry. There is more than enough evidence to justify a criminal investigation and many Americans will not accept less.
May 7th, 2009 at 11:49 amRe: “There are no policies as to how to treat alien enemy combatants, thats why the justice department is holding a conference to supposedly come up with these policies.” There were no ‘enemy combatants’ before W’s people thought up the definition, thus, the lack of policies.
Romartin16985 – mr. dittohead – face it, W’s team (your dream team i’m certain) dropped the ball, 9/11 happened, and in their rush to play catch up, they cut a lot of corners – some willingly, some out of ignorance, some both. Torture appears to have been both. They didn’t know what they were doing. They didn’t understand the SERE program or that it was based on Chinese torture tactics. They didn’t understand that the President, no matter how good his intentions, isn’t king and can’t do as he damn well pleases. They just wanted action. Wanted to hear what they wanted to hear. Wanted to invade Iraq. It’s all so very simple. All of the Bush years are and have been about Iraq. He ran because of it and his entire presidency was consumed by it. And it was all a mirage. That’s the desert for you.
So, the prior administration got a pass while in office and now those who really care about having a functioning government for generations, not just the near term or while we’re alive, have to figure out what to do so that this crap isn’t institutionalized again.
May 7th, 2009 at 12:06 pmI believe Bybee is petitioning the NV delegation because that’s where he lives.
May 7th, 2009 at 12:10 pmBybee had his golden opportunity to tell his side of the story to Leahy’s committee.
May 7th, 2009 at 12:45 pmDetermining what constitutes torture is not as simplistic as some here believe.
Even the ny times ran a story saying Bybee and the others should not be prosecuted. I wonder why not?
It would appear many on the left will in the end be content with, as usual, trying to ruin the careers and reputations of those who have the gall to disagree with them.
And to toothless, I mean shoeless, and Buck keep your name calling to yourself, your argument might hold more weight.
May 7th, 2009 at 1:15 pmActually, it could be very easy. All of you right-wing monsters submit yourselves to the treatment which killed dozens of US prisoners. Then you can tell us what constitutes torture.
May 7th, 2009 at 1:48 pmAnother compelling argument……
May 7th, 2009 at 1:53 pmWhat’s the matter? Are you afraid?
May 7th, 2009 at 1:53 pmI don’t know why you sense fear.
To answer your question, no I’m not!
May 7th, 2009 at 1:54 pmRowan and Martin were great on Laugh In the early seventies.
May 7th, 2009 at 1:54 pmNot so great here today. When you torture, you degrade America. When you defend torture you denigrate the values this country stands for.
There, fixed it for you.
May 7th, 2009 at 1:55 pmShould I remind the comedian that the techniques utilized were copied from the ChiComs to elicit FALSE confessions?
May 7th, 2009 at 1:56 pmThey work great for that.
Reliable intel? Not so much.
But he is brave. He’s not afraid to suffer “harsh interrogation techniques” for years.
May 7th, 2009 at 1:57 pmWhen you don’t understand exactly what techniques were used to gather information that prevented another attack on American citizens, you make uninformed statements.
I’m defending techniques that Congress approved and provided funding for, which saved American lives. Our President has a duty to American citizens first, not all citizens of the world. He agreed to this when he put his hand on the bible,
If the techniques used were so blatantly wrong, immoral, unethical, unlawful, useless, we’ll see all those you long to be prosecuted in jail.
This will not happen; the left will have to be content with whatever they get out of demonizing their opposition, as usual.
May 7th, 2009 at 2:02 pmDetermining what constitutes torture is not as simplistic as some here believe
— Sounds like pornography. Thing is a know both when I see them…
May 7th, 2009 at 2:03 pmYes, dbadass. And our brave little Nazi here would be the first to start screaming for mercy.
May 7th, 2009 at 2:17 pmYes congress should remove him. Congress should do a lot of things. Foremost, they should do their jobs for a change. An empty congressional chamber would be better then what we have.
May 7th, 2009 at 3:05 pmBybee you’re an inbred hillybilly goosestepping scumbag who was just folowing orders..in this case the orders were “we want to commit an act you know is illegal, and your going to help us do so by intentionally writing a memo claiming its legal, even though no 1st year law stupid would be so stupid as to beleive it actually was. this guy gives lawyers a bad name, and thats saying ALOT…
May 7th, 2009 at 3:06 pmwhateverless,
By comparing the actions of the Bush administration – interrogation of known terrorists, during ongoing hostilities with the United States initiated by the enemy, with the full knowledge and approval of Congress, in an attempt to fulfill the Presidents sworn duties, while strongly suspecting another attack was being planned and using harsh techniques only after all others had failed – to what the Nazi’s did – is just laughable.
I bet you’d be screaming loudest that enough hadn’t been done by the Bush administration if another attack had occurred.
May 7th, 2009 at 4:10 pmFine, let’s take it to the World Court at The Hague if your beloved leaders did nothing wrong. Lay it all out for the world to judge, just like we do with any other war criminal.
International law is well established in this area, and there should be no problem for Bush and Cheney to prove their innocence to the entire world.
May 7th, 2009 at 4:18 pmI’ll call BS on you. Sorry, but if there were any further attacks this prevented, you know the Bush Admin would have been promoting that out the wazoo, and McCain, a victim of torture (who btw, when he finally broke, gave the names of the Green Bay Packers offensive line and old mission info), would have been crowing that the Republicans kept us safe. No, you haven’t heard that, since they know it was illegal and they face criminal charges.
Also, your statement “If the techniques used were so blatantly wrong, immoral, unethical, unlawful, useless, we’ll see all those you long to be prosecuted in jail…” is also bs. You do realize we CONVICTED Japanese soldiers for the exact same techniques in WWII. So how far has our world changed in 60 years that you can redefine what constitutes torture?! And please don’t tell me that these “terrorists” are anymore bad ass than the evil we fought in WWII. The fact that now there are a great many Americans who ACCEPT this demonstrates just how far down our moral barometer dropped under the Bush Admin. The fact that every member of Congress is not demanding trials, shows just how complicit they are in violating their oath to the Constitution. Remember, the President does not take an oath to protect the American people. He takes an oath to uphold the Constitution, which if followed, protects our liberties. If not, we end up just like any other country we would be passing moral judgement on for torturing.
May 7th, 2009 at 4:22 pmAnd we executed them.
Expect our little Nazi troll to studiously ignore this fact.
May 7th, 2009 at 4:24 pmThe Bush administration had/has more class than to promote their accomplishment of keeping us safe from another attack. If have any knowledge of what was redacted from the “torture memos”, you know this is true.
The constitution also protects our right to life.
The libs are in power, if they had any standing here it’d be done already.
May 7th, 2009 at 4:29 pmYes, Shoeless, sorry I omitted that.
Also, Romartin, since you and your open-mouthed breathing bretheren on the right seem to think the President, since GWB was always so confused on this and it became his fall back excuse, is supposed to keep us safe, here is the Oath of Office:
“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”
The Constitution is the only sacred text of this land. It requires protection and defense, something that was sorely lacking the past 8 years, and sadly, continues. I am hopeful that will change.
May 7th, 2009 at 4:32 pmBuckarooBanzai, I told you the coward would ignore our executions of the Japanese. This basic fact cannot be absorbed by Republican drones. If it somehow registered, their little lizard minds would explode.
May 7th, 2009 at 4:33 pmSeriously? You say this with a straight face? First, 9/11 happened on their watch. They couldn’t be bothered with meeting with Richard Clarke who was urgently warning of a grave threat. They ignored the Aug.6 PDF that explicitly stated an attack was looming. You also forget the Anthrax attacks, which was another attack. Or the fact that GWB decided to invade a sovereign nation where the US Forces are under attack to this day. So please spare us all your bs on how classy the Bush Admin is/was.
May 7th, 2009 at 4:37 pmShoeless, they also like to ignore that the world continues to demand justice of anyone who tortured. Pinochet, Nazi guards. Or the fact that Bush himself stated war crimes would not be tolerated and would go fully punished. Romartin, you have seen that video of W, no? Why don’t the rules apply to them?
May 7th, 2009 at 4:40 pmThat doesn’t count because the terrorists were only attacking Democratic Congressional leaders the same week that Bush was attempting to push the Patriot Act through Congress.
Oh wait!
May 7th, 2009 at 4:43 pmOur vacuous Republican groveler also ignored the fact that his hero, Ronald Reagan signed the UN Convention Against Torture in 1984, even though I explicitly pointed it out to him.
You have to ignore a lot of stuff to remain a Republican zombie these days.
May 7th, 2009 at 4:46 pmYou’re ignoring the facts of THIS situation.
Continue blaming the Bush administration for an attack on their watch, while finding a way to also blame them (however inaccurate the argument) for not having an attack on their watch. Highlights our differences.
May 7th, 2009 at 7:12 pmBybee’s and Yoo’s memos are how-to manuals for torturers with step-by-step instructions, not works of legal analysis. Relevant laws, treaties, court decisions and past prosecutions are not mentioned; Bybee has a record of careful legal scholarship, so we know he has the skills.
May 7th, 2009 at 8:17 pmI’ve been trying to lobby my congressman as an american citizen and a voter living in his district, and tell him my opinion of torture. I bet Bybee is listened to more than I am.
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