Torture Cabal Is Identified

Every day, it seems like we learn a little more about how people very high up in the Bush administration approved and ordered the use of torture in questioning prisoners. Until now, the highest officials were attorneys in the Justice Department who twisted the law to justify the use of torture, but the latest documents declassified and released show the real villains were much higher up.

Dick Cheney, Condoleezza Rice, John Ashcroft and Antonio Gonzales all were aware of the torture and signed off on its use. And while there is no "smoking gun" that ties George Bush to the torture (yet), I find it almost impossible to believe he would be unaware of the actions of these four people.

The document also seems to clear a couple of White House officials. It looks like Donald Rumsfeld and Colin Powell were not in the loop when it came to knowledge and approval of the torture. Further documents may change this, but right now it looks like these two are innocent of approving the use of torture.

It is time for President Obama to appoint a Special Prosecutor. This little torture cabal thought they could break the law and get away with it because of who they were and the high positions they held in the Bush administration. They must be shown they are not above the law.

Meanwhile, Joe Lieberman proves once again that his loyalty still lies with the Bush administration, and not with the Democratic Party. He has joined with Republican apologists Senator Lindsey Graham and Senator John McCain in defending the Justice Department lawyers who gave the Bush administration its legal justification to torture.

The senators admitted the legal opinions produced were "deeply flawed", but said charging the attorneys "would have a deeply chilling effect on the ability of lawyers in any administration to provide their client — the U.S. government — with their best legal advice."

The reasoning of the three senators is also deeply flawed. These attorneys were not giving "their best legal advice". They were twisting the law to allow the Bush administration to commit what were obviously criminal acts. They should be prosecuted, along with Cheney, Rice, Ashcroft and Gonzales.

This should not be done for retribution (although they deserve any punishment they might receive), but in order to show future administrations that no one is above the law and these kinds of criminal acts will not be tolerated.