ACLU: Torture approved at highest levels

Here's part of a new press release from the ACLU:

NEW YORK – The American Civil Liberties Union today released newly obtained documents showing that senior Defense Department officials approved aggressive interrogation techniques that Federal Bureau of Investigation agents deemed abusive, ineffective and unlawful.

“We now possess overwhelming evidence that political and military leaders endorsed interrogation methods that violate both domestic and international law,” said Jameel Jaffer, an attorney with the ACLU. “It is entirely unacceptable that no senior official has been held accountable.”

Included in today’s release is a memorandum prepared by FBI personnel on May 30, 2003, which supplies a detailed discussion of tensions between FBI and Defense Department personnel stationed at Guantánamo in late 2002. According to the memo, Defense Department interrogators were encouraged by their superiors to “use aggressive interrogation tactics” that FBI agents believed were “of questionable effectiveness and subject to uncertain interpretation based on law and regulation.” The May 2003 memo specifically names Maj. Gen. Geoffrey D. Miller, who was then Commander of Joint Task Force-Guantánamo, as having favored interrogation methods that FBI agents believed “could easily result in the elicitation of unreliable and legally inadmissible information.” The memo states that FBI personnel brought their concerns to the attention of senior Defense Department personnel but that their concerns were brushed aside.

This is just one more piece of evidence for the war crimes trials against Bush and his thugs. And, it's one more reason they can never leave office. Maybe I'm way off the deep end on this, but I truly fear they will decide to remain in office after 2008. Even another Rethuglican regime isn't likely to protect them from eventually being brought to justice. The only thing short of remaining in office that will protect them is massive use of presidential pardons. I just don't see Bush pardoning himself. It's not in his makeup to admit the guilt required to receive the pardon.