HUMAN RIGHTS
Bush's Legal 'Black Hole' Enters Seventh Year

Six long years ago today, "the first orange-clad, shackled and blindfolded prisoners arrived at Guantanamo's Camp X-Ray." Worldwide protests are marking today's anniversary. The ACLU notes, "Since that dark day in recent American history, more than 700 people have been detained without due process and not a single trial has been completed." For six years, Guantanamo has existed as an island outside the boundaries of law, staining America's reputation as a nation that respects the rule of law. In April 2006, the Center for American Progress laid out a comprehensive strategy for dealing with suspected terrorists after the closure of Guantanamo. "The best solution to the challenges of Guantanamo lies in working with our allies to create a Special Tribunal for International Terrorist Suspects in order to share the responsibility of detaining, trying, and imprisoning terrorists," wrote analyst Ken Gude. In June 2006, Bush declared, "I'd like to close Guantanamo." Two months ago, Condoleezza Rice echoed his point: "The President has said, and I fully agree, we would like nothing better than to close Guantanamo." But those words have proved to be little more than lip service. The Bush administration appears willing to leave office without addressing Guantanamo, leaving its successor to deal with the legal "black hole" it has created. Sign the ACLU's petition to close Guantanamo here.

BUSH FAILS TO HEED CONSERVATIVE VOICES: In June 2007, Bush's former Secretary of State Colin Powell said, "If it was up to me, I would close Guantanamo -- not tomorrow, this afternoon," explaining that "we have shaken the belief that the world had in America's justice system by keeping a place like Guantanamo open." Even former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee acknowledged that Guantanamo has become a damaging symbol for the United States and is "not in our best interests." Defense Secretary Robert Gates reportedly pushed to close Gitmo because he felt the detention facility had "become so tainted abroad that legal proceedings at Guantanamo would be viewed as illegitimate." Despite these and other prominent conservative voices who have spoken up for closing the facility, Bush has failed to act. Vice President Cheney, who has long expressed objections to shutting down Guantanamo, appears to have found renewed strength with the appointment of Attorney General Michael Mukasey. "I can't simply say we have to close Guantanamo," Mukasey told Congress during his confirmation hearings. The Financial Times reported recently that anti-Cheney forces inside the administration "had lost the intensity needed to have a realistic chance of closing the prison." 

WHAT HAPPENS IN GITMO STAYS IN GITMO: Interrogation practices at Guantanamo have reportedly included the use of waterboarding and other torture tactics in violation of the Geneva Conventions. In November, a House Judiciary subcommittee held a hearing on the effectiveness of Bush's "enhanced" interrogation program and sought the testimony of Lt. Col. Stuart Couch, a former Guantanamo Bay prosecutor. Couch had declined to prosecute a "high value" detainee because he concluded at the time that the prisoner's incriminating statements "had been taken through torture, rendering them inadmissible under U.S. and international law." Couch's knowledge of Guantanamo's inner workings posed such a threat to the administration that officials prevented him from testifying before Congress. In December, the Senate sought the testimony of Col. Morris Davis, the former chief prosecutor for the military commissions at Gitmo. Davis resigned his position last fall because he felt the justice system had become "deeply politicized" and too willing to allow evidence obtained through torture. Unsurprisingly, the administration also blocked Davis from testifying. Last month, Brig. Gen. Thomas Hartmann, the current legal adviser at Guantanamo, refused to condemn waterboarding.

CONGRESS PICKING UP THE SLACK: In the absence of presidential leadership, Congress is stepping up to address the problems created by Guantanamo. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) has introduced legislation that would close the detention facility and restore due process rights to those being held at Guantanamo. Congress also passed a bill to require the CIA to adhere to the Army Field Manual on interrogation, which bans waterboarding, mock executions, and other harsh interrogation methods, but Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) recently placed a hold on that legislation. Additionally, Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Arlen Specter (R-PA), and Chris Dodd (D-CT) are still pushing legislation to restore habeas corpus review for detainees, one of the rights that was eliminated with the passage of the 2006 Military Commissions Act.

Under the Radar

ETHICS -- INVESTIGATIONS PLUMMET UNDER NASA INSPECTOR GENERAL: A USA Today review found that the number of investigations within NASA has been sharply reduced under the tenure of NASA Inspector General Robert "Moose" Cobb. "Cobb's office opened 68 investigations of waste and fraud by agency employees and contractors during the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, down from 508 in fiscal year 2002. ... By comparison, inspectors general at four similarly-sized agencies each opened hundreds of investigations last year: Labor, 418; Justice, 421; Agriculture, 385; Interior, 414, their reports to Congress show." Cobb's leadership has been widely criticized. Last summer, in an "unusual" congressional inquiry, former top associates of Cobb accused him of "being abusive, vulgar, unprofessional and seemingly beholden to top management of the agency he oversees." The report "found that he had created the appearance of a lack of independence by lunching, drinking and golfing with top NASA officials." The agency is currently led by administrator Michael Griffin, who has recently come under fire for denying that global warming is a problem.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS -- PENTAGON SAYS BOAT THREATS MAY NOT HAVE COME FROM IRAN: Earlier this week, the Pentagon alleged that three of its Navy ships in the Strait of Hormuz had been harassed and provoked by Iranian speedboats. The Navy said it had felt so threatened that it was about to open fire on the boats. Some bloggers were immediately skeptical, noting that the voice on the boats did not sound Iranian. Iran released its own video, arguing the footage did not show any Iranian boats approaching the U.S. vessels, nor any provocation. Yesterday, the Navy acknowledged that the verbal threat made on the tape may not have been Iranian: "We're saying that we cannot make a direct connection to the boats there," said the spokesperson. "I guess we're not saying that it absolutely came from the boats, but we're not saying it absolutely didn't." Without definitive evidence that it was Iran who was making the provocative verbal threats, Bush nevertheless seized on the episode -- just hours before he was set to depart for the Middle East -- to underscore "his assertion that the Iranians are capable of acting recklessly." "We viewed it as a provocative act," Bush said. Yesterday, he warned Iran, "There will be serious consequences if they attack our ships, pure and simple."

CONGRESS -- REP. DOOLITTLE TO RETIRE UNDER LINGERING ETHICS CLOUD: Under criminal investigation since 2004, Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA) announced yesterday that he will not run for re-election this fall. The nine-term congressman made the announcement amidst an ongoing Justice Department investigation concerning his ties to corrupt lobbyist Jack Abramoff. In September, Doolittle defiantly proclaimed, "I will not step aside." Yet for the past few months, he has faced intense pressure to resign from fellow right-wing lawmakers, including former congressman Richard Pombo, who lost his seat in 2006 because of ethics problems. Last year, Doolittle's home was searched by the FBI, members of his staff were subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury, and prosecutors fought to gain access to his congressional records.

Think Fast

President Bush wrapped up his visit to Israel yesterday, promising to return in May to "continue pressing the Israelis and Palestinians into reaching a peace agreement." A recent poll of Israelis, however, found that "found that 77 percent of those questioned believed Mr. Bush would fail in the mission."

The Department of Homeland Security will announce today that "driver's license rules and procedures will be standardized across all 50 states." The new plan is expected to anger many, including states that have to implement the changes and civil rights groups who say "the changes will invade individuals' privacy."

Several analysts and former military officials argue that the Iraq surge "may actually have enhanced prospects for a bloodier civil war by effectively permitting the warring sides" -- now more segregated than ever -- "to re-group and re-arm in anticipation of a new round of bloodletting as U.S. troops withdraw."

"The chairmen of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees joined in asking the Justice Department on Thursday for details of contracts that the department directed to former Attorney General John Ashcroft and other outside lawyers" following reports of favoritism by the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey. 

According to Federal Emergency Management Agency records provided to USA Today, only about $1 billion of the $4.5 billion worth of infrastructure projects earmarked for Louisiana and Mississippi" after the 2005 Gulf coast hurricanes has been spent, "a sign that key pieces of the region's recovery effort are languishing in red tape."

"Presenting a bleak picture of a deteriorating national economy, Ben S. Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve, strongly suggested on Thursday that the Fed would cut interest rates soon, perhaps by a large amount." "We stand ready to take substantive additional actions," Bernanke said.

Shortly after ABC News reported on the rape of former Halliburton/KBR employee, Jamie Leigh Jones, Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) wrote to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for answers. Her deadline to reply of Dec. 21 passed with no response. Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX) has also wrote to Rice on Jan. 3, criticizing the "lack of cooperation from her department." No response yet.

And finally: On Wednesday, the conservative Heritage Foundation hosted guests for a lunch event. They were served "turkey and brie on cranberry bread." The reaction to the sandwich by the right-wing crowd? "This is kind of a liberal sandwich," moaned one of the attendees.

Good News

"Using a new type of genetic screen, researchers at Harvard Medical School have identified 273 proteins that the AIDS virus needs to survive in human cells, opening up new potential targets for drugs."

State Watch

MASSACHUSETTS: Massachusetts scientists make embryonic stem cell research advances that "could speed development of stem-cell-based treatments for a variety of diseases."

TENNESSEE: State House passes resolution honoring Al Gore's work on global warming.
CALIFORNIA: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) declares fiscal state of emergency.

Blog Watch

THINK PROGRESS: White House predicts President Bush will leave office with a 45 percent approval rating.

TAPPED: Time.com blogger wonders whether there is room for only one powerful woman in Washington, DC.

TV NEWSER: "Senior" MSNBC executive says "Chris Matthews is infuriated" by Keith Olbermann's "success."

Daily Grill

"An intelligence official said weapons operators on the three Navy warships were within seconds of firing shipboard guns on the five Iranian boats."
-- Washington Times, 1/11/08

VERSUS

"[N]ew information over the past three days suggests that the incident did not involve such a threat and that no U.S. commander was on the verge of firing at the Iranian boats."
-- IPS News, 1/10/08

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