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Cheney War Crimes: Just Look at the Statute
President Obama needs to tell Attorney General Eric Holder to indict Dick Cheney, right now, for war crimes.
Just look at the statute, Title 18 of the U.S. Criminal Code, Section 2441. It says that someone is guilty of a war crime if he or she commits a "grave breach of common Article 3" of the Geneva Conventions. And then it defines what a grave breach would be.
One such breach is torture, or the conspiracy to commit torture, which Cheney was clearly in on, as when he repeatedly defended waterboarding and talked about the need to go to the "dark side" Here's the language from the statute: "The act of a person who commits, or conspires to commit, an act specifically intended to inflict severe physical or mental pain or suffering . . . upon another person within his custody or physical control for the purpose of obtaining information or a confession, punishment, intimidation, coercion, or any reason based on discrimination of any kind."
Another grave breach is "cruel or inhuman treatment," or the conspiracy to inflict such treatment. Again, Cheney was supervising such treatment in the White House, which would qualify as committing this crime. One time, it got so ghoulish that Attorney General John Ashcroft asked the other principals, "Why are we talking about this in the White House? History will not judge this kindly."
Here's the language on "cruel or inhuman treatment": "The act of a person who commits, or conspires or attempts to commit, an act intended to inflict severe or serious physical or mental pain or suffering . . . including serious physical abuse, upon another within his custody or control."
An additional breach is "mutilation or maiming." Since some detainees say they no longer have the complete functioning of arms or limbs, Cheney may be on the hook here, too. "The act of a person who intentionally injures, or conspires or attempts to injure, or injures whether intentionally or unintentionally in the course of committing any other offense under this subsection, one or more persons . . . by disfiguring the person or persons by any mutilation thereof or by permanently disabling any member, limb or organ of his body, without any legitimate medical or dental purpose."
"Intentionally causing serious bodily harm" is yet another grave breach. The statute defines this as: "The act of a person who intentionally causes, or conspires or attempts to cause, serious bodily injury to one or more persons, including lawful combatants, in violation of the law of war."
For each of these offenses, Cheney could receive life in prison, according to the statute.
That is where he belongs.
And it's time for Obama to stop pussyfooting around. He should indict, arrest, and prosecute Cheney.
"There is no longer any doubt as to whether the current administration has committed war crimes," said Major General Antonio Taguba, USA (Ret.), in the preface to the Physicians for Human Rights report, "Broken Laws, Broken Lives". "The only question that remains to be answered is whether those who ordered the use of torture will be held to account."
That question is now firmly on Obama's desk.
And if he continues to dodge it, he'll make a sick joke of the pious claim that we are a nation of laws, not men.
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57 Comments so far
Show AllCheney should indeed, be tried and prosecuted and hung just as Saddam Hussein was (Cheney's old buddy, by the way).
What part of Nancy Pelosi's November 2006 "impeachment is off the table" decree did you not understand ???????????????
Nancy assured that the Dubya Regime's license to steal and murder had no expiration date.
Cheney is set up to move to Paraguay (they don't extradite criminals)if the heat gets turned up.
"Cheney is set up to move to Paraguay (they don't extradite criminals)if the heat gets turned up."
Actually, they changed that shortly after W purchased his big "ranch" down there. I thought it was really a nice thing for the world, as it gave the crooks one less place to go and hide.
Sioux Rose
All too true, but the larger truth is that a society that not only condones, but trains its citizens to relish war makes probable more Cheneys. Among those who learn to identify with violence will be a percentage of sick cookies who really enjoy it, which is to say gravitate to the front lines where they will be free to inflict all those cruel and inhuman tactics (some of these torture protocols learned over centuries!) on other human beings, those conveniently dehumanized and identified as "undesirables."
Just as we cannot surgically remove greed from the human psyche, and thus must REGULATE those with control or access to the collective money supply; our best strategy is to make the lords of militarism ANSWER to GENUINE rules of conduct. Although I find the very premise of "rules of war" or "law of war" an oxymoron, a good starting place is The Geneva Conventions. Our nation stepped into the dark side when Bush made that document as quaint as Habeas Corpus or our Constitution. No nation can maintain true civil liberties when its leaders are given unchecked power. The fact that Obama and his administration are doing nothing substantial to hold the trespassers to account, means that the PRECEDENT for a dictator cum unitary executive remains viable. It's as if a dangerous animal left a trail for the next one to more easily follow.
Chalmers Johnson, in the final book to the Blowback trilogy (Nemesis), said that conditions are right for a military takeover in this country. This was written during little George's administration (the father is big George, pejoratives intended all around them), not much has changed with Obama, other than the change of name and a more humane face put on various things. There were reports of torture, reported here on CD, during January, after he was inaugurated. I've said before, just because the leader changes, doesn't mean the grunts at the bottom, the ones who actually do the work, change. And I don't see mentions of bringing justice for those recent crimes.
Launching two wars of aggression, based on fabricated evidence, against countries who posed no threat to us, is the grandfather of all war crimes. Torture, warrantless wiretapping and rendition are subcategories.
Cheney and his sock puppet Bush, as well as Powell, Rumsfeld and Rice, are guilty of all of the above. If we were truly a nation of laws, they would already have been charged, tried, convicted and hung.
Jethro: "If we were truly a nation of laws, ... "
We are a nation of enough laws to choke on. The important matters are how and to whom and for what those laws are applied. In so many areas we have failed to be just, impartial, and fair——on the federal level and also the state and local levels, which ... with some commendable exceptions ... still reflect racism/ethnicism, social and economic classism, various discriminations based on gender, lifestyle, educational levels, and more.
The obvious law-breaking and Constitution-shredding by Bush, Cheney, Rice, Rumsfeld, and all the associated criminals of the GW administration, in house [and in partnership with other nations], will not be addressed because it is inconvenient and dangerous to go after these people.
Unfortunately, by allowing all these top-level messy, criminal to treasonous scenarios to gradually disappear behind the curtains of history will be the strongest signal of our demise as a nation of laws. Our claim to being some kind of moral beacon for the rest of the world has already lost all credibility.
Further, AIG and major financial institutions have gotten away with practices that have brought our economy down, but, not to worry for the major players, with their Swiss bank accounts bulging and their off-shore havens secure; the muted tongue and the blind eye turned to the suffering of the people of Gaza, for which because of made-in-the-U.S.-of-A. weapons, poisons, and gifted billions, we are as culpable for that terrible suffering as Israel; and the total desecration and devastation of Iraq, now home to poor widows and orphans ... so ???? Our flame is barely flickering. With business as usual [last night's Obama press conference: a return to "economic growth"], regardless of all the sincere-sounding, usual rah-rah words, it will go out.
Tell me the hopeful reasons it isn't so, and why, and I will gladly listen.
A whole new, more benevolent global paradigm must evolve, sooner rather than later, but if it doesn't ... ???
with dispassionate passion, /cm
Cheney should be in jail for far longer than his lifetime. He should get two or three life sentences. And then he should go to hell for two or three eternities. This country has never churned out a more evil and disgusting human being. He is an embarrassment to this country and to humanity in general.
If this country can prosecute the Germans and the Japanese after WWII, then we have a clear obligation to prosecute our own who do the exact same things to people from other countries. To not do so is a clear dismissal of our obligations to the world, and is not an acceptable thing. At the very least we should turn Cheney and W over to the Hague for war crimes trials.
I am embarrassed by the lack of accountability from the current administration. They should either lead, follow OUR lead and prosecute, or get the hell out fo the way and let someone else prosecute. To not do anything shows that they apparently approve of the illegality. And that is completely unacceptable, if we indeed are a nation of laws (which now apparently only apply to US not to the "leaders" of the country).
Nothing will happen here as the "new" Obama admin will be proven to be a prettier version of the last eight years....The war on terror is now called "the overseas contingency operation"...same genocide....cuter name....
And if he continues to dodge it, he'll make a sick joke of the pious claim that we are a nation of laws, not men.
______________________________________
It's a joke Presidents never get tired of telling!
It's on a par with the previous War-Criminal-in-Chief's hilarious Gridiron Club comedy routine, in which he pretended to look under his desk for the missing Iraq WMD-- the crowd of corporate media infotainwhores went wild!
I guess one could say that Amerika's president isn't only our Chief Executive-- he's also our First Clown.
In any case, I quibble only with the tense of the above quote. I say that to the extent that Obama IS dodging the question-- indeed, the vast range of questions about the state of civil liberties and the previous maladministration's misconduct-- he IS making a sick joke of the pious claims he so eloquently spouts.
But while I'm always happy to read public criticisms of Obama's penchant to imitate and defend his predecessor, I think it's obvious by now that our political elite has circled the wagons and have agreed amongst themselves that even investigating, let alone charging, Bush officials is taboo.
We the People have been reduced to snarling and sniffling We the Children, vainly trying to persuade our extended family of political parents to do the right thing. And I'm not at all sanguine about the prospects of moving the collective Daddies and Mommies from their No Means No stance.
· Yr Obd't Servant
If there is any justice, Dick Cheney would die in the same jail cell where Slobodan Milosevic drew his last breath.
smipypr
We should also add to the list those in the House and Senate who were briefed on such actions. So many people have been conned into thinking the prosecution of Bush, Cheney, et. al. is looking backward, and would be "painful" for the United States to endure. That's what they said about impeaching Nixon, and the result was the Reagan administration's various criminal activities. If any administration has even a hint they can get away with something, they'll do it.
With the general public up in arms over the AIG bonuses, no one in Congress is going to be looking seriously at setting up large-scale hearings.
We let the Bush/Cheney cabal get away with all their crimes and now Obama is continuing the plan with the implementation of the financial crimes which are well underway and we are allowing him and his wall street cronies to get away with it too. We the people have transmogrified into we the sheeple and we are being led down the corridors to our financial, cultural and political slaughter!
As terrible as a crime it is that Cheney is committing, our government has been practicing these tactics through the School of Americas. While we should hold Cheney responsible for his actions we should also push our current officials to close the SOA if we are truely committed to stopping these war crimes.
I voted for Barack Obama, but I'm truly angry over his adamant refusal to prosecute anyone from the Bush White House for War Crimes. It would not be too painful for the country, and it is not looking backward. It would lessen the amount of pain this country is in, and it would be a fresh start. It needs to be done-and it needs to be done immediately.
Every day that passes while this goes unaddressed we sink deeper and deeper as a country. Until this issue is addressed, we will never move forward as a country. First things first.
I only hope that Obama, behind the scenes, is using the threat of going after Bush&Co and their supporters to his advantage.
Dream on, Jeeves.
"President Obama needs to tell Attorney General Eric Holder to indict Dick Cheney, right now, for war crimes."
"And it's time for Obama to stop pussyfooting around. He should indict, arrest, and prosecute Cheney."
Although I have great respect for the Progressive magazine and its editor Matthew Rothschild's political acumen on most things, we are in fundamental disagreement on this one.
Sorry, folks. The issue of launching a war crimes prosecution of Dick Cheney is not "now firmly on Obama's desk." It remains firmly on Attorney General Eric Holder's desk, where the Constitution and federal statutes defining the authority of the US Department of Justice have placed it.
In my opinion, as we emerge from eight years of unitary executive branch, Commander-in-Chief, imperial Presidency perogative hocus pocus, it would set a very dangerous precedent for Barack Obama to "tell Attorney General Eric Holder" which of his partisan adversaries ought to be criminally indicted.
I continue to be amazed that so many on the left (like Mr. Rothschild) who deeply revere Constitutional checks and balances, civil liberties and the rule of law in general, so casually skip over the pesky, towering legal constraints that stand in the way of doing what is being advocated.
The President of the United States does not have the power to indict anybody, arrest anybody, or prosecute anybody. The President's powers vis a vis the federal criminal justice system come in only at the very end of that process, in terms of the power to grant pardons or commute sentences of those who have been convicted. Obama would be grossly overstepping the powers of his own office to treat Eric Holder like some mendicant lawyer flunky, an empty suit expected to snap to attention and help the boss politicize use of the grand jury process.
Would the Progressive have applauded a phone call from Ronald Reagan to Attorney General Edwin Meese ordering Jimmy Carter to be prosecuted for waging illegal war in Afghanistan, or a similar call from George W. Bush directing John Ashcroft or Alberto Gonzales to sic a grand jury on Bill and/or Hillary Clinton? Wholly apart from the patent illegality of White House interference in the DOJ's charging processes, this opens up a Pandora's box of future partisan reprisal and chicanery.
Yes, Dick Cheney should be indicted and put on trial for torture and related war crimes.
Yes, the statutes Matthew Rothschild cites say what they say and should be enforced.
But Barack Obama should completely butt out of that entire process, both as a matter of law and as a matter of politics.
Those who consider themselves part of the progressive political left should pause, and reconsider all the ramifications of what they urge in the heat of the moment. Be careful - very careful - what you wish for.
Why do you want to dump this turd on Obama's plate, and hand Dick Cheney the defense of vindictive prosecution upon a silver platter?
Bill from Saginaw
Bill from Saginaw sez: "... it would set a very dangerous precedent for Barack Obama to 'tell Attorney General Eric Holder' which of his partisan adversaries ought to be criminally indicted."
***
While I agree with your sentiment, sir, the precedent has already been set. For the preceding five years or so, the job description of 'U.S. Attorney General' was basically 'toadie to the administration.'
Hi Bill--The circumstances you describe provide a sterling example of why the AG/Justice DEpartment and all other regulatory agencies need to be removed from the Executive and placed within their own "Branch" so they can do their work without any political interference. If this were the case, then no one could ever keep impeachment "off the table," and would commit an obstruction of justice if attempted. AS you note, without this "distancing," there is no way Holder would be free from attacks that he's on a politically motivated "witch hunt." Furthermore, any such indictments must include W, Rumsfeld, Powell, Rice, and others who were partners to the conspiracy to commit torture, etc. Lastly, if the US governemnt doesn't take action over these very clear crimes against humanity, that would allow the ICC or any of its assignee countries to take action on their own--indeed, the ICC treaty DEMANDS they take such action. It would also appear that Blair and some of his cohort should face the same charges.
As an old retired government teacher I have to say,"YOU SAID IT RIGHT." Why well educated people are unaware of this division of power is kinda sad.
As an old retired government teacher I have to say,"YOU SAID IT RIGHT." Why well educated people are unaware of this division of power is kinda sad.
Hey,
With all the evidence that a crime has been committed - maybe Obama could just send The Attorney General a MEMO; it could say "Hey Eric, I found out a crime has been committed! ...It's the crime of TORTURE - here are some photos and other evidence. Maybe someone should look into it." - and get the ball rolling.
(Like a good citizen - kind of like the way those neighborhood watch groups alert the police when they witness someone committing a violent crime against another person.)
What you're saying, if I understand you, is that if Obama disagrees with the concept of 'unitary executive' that he has rendered himself powerless to use those powers to go after his 'political opponents', assuming by that you mean Republicans, rather than criminals who used the office to commit crimes and potentially a coup against the Constitution.
I guess that means that only Republicans are allowed to use the Justice Dept. politically.
While I agree with you that if the 'liberal party' (forgive me - I'm giggling) were to abuse the law to go after the lawless it would make them hypocrites, I can't help but feel justified in my wish to see Wolf, Rummy, Rice, Cheney, and W spend a couple of years at Guantanimo experiencing what they themselves refuse to call 'torture'. The better angels of my nature tell me that we should just end the concepts of 'enemy combatatant' and 'unitary executive', and use proper channels to enforce the law. I can't help the feeling of despair that there will be no lawful accountability for those that brought us so close (and are we out of danger yet?) to destruction as a Constitutional Republic. I suppose I should just buck up and hope, but the rational part of me looks at the evidence and says it isn't looking good.
How can we encourage children/young people/anyone to do what is right and respectful when they have the model of greed and criminality=riches and power...this sets a really abominable precedent/example for the future...that seduces those with no conscience, or critical thinking.
Join The World Court and abide by its rulings.....Let the World Community bring them to trial.......
Unfortunately, the economy is on a "Downward Spiral".....American Capitalists have made and moved their money outside the United States into "Ghost Accounts"...
As Rush Limbaugh and many Conservatives (Including Democratic Conservatives)have said, "I want to see Obama fail." Which means, "Let's screw the American People and shut down our factories, stores, and small businesses." All the people Obama chose to run the economy are either tied to Council on Foreign Relations or The Bilderberg Club ("The Power Elite") and are the ones that created the rules to deregulate the banking industry and are networked to everyone on Wall Street. (Remember, Wall Street was expecting to get Social Security instead they got the Federal Reserve and The U.S. Treasury.) (Do you see either Paul Krugman or Joseph Stiglitz in Obama's advisory corp?)
Wouldn't it be patriotic to run your factories and buinesses "At Cost" for the next five years so that America could get back on its feet? Wouldn't it be patriotic of CEO's to take severe pay cuts (The average CEO in Europe makes 40 times the pay of an average worker. In the United States, a CEO makes 372 times the pay of an average worker.) Wouldn't it be patriotic to bring back the jobs that were shipped to foreign countries s that profits would increase.
Shut down 50% of the 1000 U.S bases and retire every General that agreed to invade Afghanistan and Iraq......We have spent over 6 TRILLION DOLLARS ( Donald Rumsfeld admitted in 2002 that the Department of Defence could not account for 2 TRILLION DOLLARS of expenditures and the GAO stated in 2003 that the Department of Defence could not account for another 1 TRILLION DOLLARS of expenditures. Now add that to the 3 TRILLION DOLLARS Joseph Stiglitz has claimed that the War in Iraq has cost.)
Over 1 million people dead in Iraq......"God have mercy on us all!"
Why is Obama protecting Cheney?
1. Because as Senator, Obama was an accomplice, an aider and abettor to his crimes.
2. Because as President, Obama's committing the same crimes.
Next question.
Cheney and Bush should both be in trouble. Not just for the tourture but also for the whole 911 situation. Come on people if the jet engine doesn't melt from jet fuel when its flying, why would the engine melt once the plane crashed. Answer: It won't. Only thermite can bring down a building. Ever since the 70's they have built skyscrapers to resist airplane impacts. It could be foggy and the plane accidently hits the building, REMEMBER!!!! Plus if you drop a pool ball off of the World Trade Center it would take 9 seconds in free fall for it to hit the ground. The whole building came down in just 10 seconds. How does that much steel and concrete mass just jump out of the way for a building to come down at free fall speed. Its called DEMOLITION...with the use of Thermite..Result NOW WE HAVE AN EXCUSE TO GO TO WAR!!!! And we can sell lots of airplanes and tanks and bullits and guns, and drones. Then we will blow up a whole country and pay our selves to rebuild it through our own private construction companies. Anyone remember the sinking of the Lusitania, that was the previous excuse to enter WWII. Why would a passenger ship be carrying munitions? Cause it was PLANNED.
Plus the smolder lasted 2 weeks at temps well above 1500 degrees. Thats the Thermite still burning. OH YEAH, and the World Trade Center Twin Towers are the only steel building to EVER collapse due to Fire in the history of all the building in the whole world. Anyone been to an air show. The plane flys past you and then later you hear the sound of it. Well there is video of a guy in NJ across the river who tapped the whole 911 event, BUT on the video you Hear BANG BANG BOOM and then you see the building come down. FOLKS it should be the other way around. You should see the building come down and then HEAR the sound following afterwards. But you DON"T. Cause the Thermite detonated first and then the building came down.
I hope they both get served.
Yes, and why did Building 7 collapse? No plane hit it. The fires weren't that big either.
Apparently, that wasn't even mentioned in the 9-11 Commission Report.
VERRY Strange.....something fishy is going on....
Glad to hear you are waking up. Where have you been since 9/11/01? PLEASE check out ther 911dvdproject.com......free dvds that you can send to everyone. Please help get the truth out...........this is the key to it all! DEMAND the FBI release some 82 videos of the supposed plane that hit the Pentagon.
"And if he continues to dodge it, he'll make a sick joke of the pious claim that we are a nation of laws, not men."
Too late - we're already way, way there.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/
President Obama seems to be confused on this subject, where the law is quite clear. So, please make your voices heard and write or email the White House and request that a special prosecutor be appointed, and point out that this is not politics.
"The trouble with fighting for human freedom is that one spends most of one's time defending scoundrels. For it is against scoundrels that oppressive laws are first aimed, and oppression must be stopped at the beginning if it is to be stopped at all."
H. L. Mencken (1880 - 1956)
Jeevee
A LAW IS ONLY A LAW IF IT IS PUT INTO ACTION!!!
Any attempt to prosecute Cheney will become a farce. He'll get off the hook, and it will only serve to humiliate Obama and distract from his agenda. We need to give Cheney his comeuppance by moving forward and undoing the damage he caused.
Isn't it about time that our leaders do something?
You all need to
SIGN THE PETITION TO INDICT CHENEY
and PUSH Obama to have AG Holder appoint a Special Prosecutor
http://ANGRYVoters.org
Over 63,000 have signed
Join Them!
PLEASE Forward to everyone you know
.
PRIVATIZE NUREMBERG.
$10/MO x 5 million people = fund to pursue war criminals.
Incentify teams of lawyers for convictions.
"That question is now firmly on Obama's desk"
The question should be firmly on the people's desk. Rothschild writes like a republican, not a progressive. Ok JHK, lets all 300,000 of we the POTUSs sign that petition. Darth Viper needs a swift political death so the rest of the planet may live.
After Nixon Ford said the country could not stand a long drawn out impeachment process. Nancy says the impeachment is off the table. We either stand for the right things (laws) that every one has to follow or we don't and I guess we don't. It is too bad because when my grandchildren ask what I did during this mess I must confess that my party (Democrats) did nothing. We stand for nothing or we stand for something. I prefer to stand for law and order common decency and the love of all of our fellow humans until they prove themselves incapable of sustaining that love and respect. The last eight years is a blot that will never be erradicated from the U. S. history. To think of all the criminal activity that went on and no one did a thing.
Anyone believe that if President Obama breaks a single law, or even seems to have done so, that the repugs will say, "We need to concentrate on the economy," and not go after him with guns blazing?
If any of us sees him anywhere, let's "extraordiarily rendition" him to the Hague.
Excellent by Rothschild! I hope Obama's people get to read that.
There will be lots more information about the torture techniques to come out over the next few months. One article said that General Hayden was furious that the torture techniques were being made public. Wait until we find out about the use of psychotropic drug injections. One of the better statements about torture came from one of the Iraqis released from Abu Ghraib, "They brought electricity to my ass before they brought it to my house". It was censored out of a Letter to the Editor I sent. It is important for our posters to write letters to the editors of their local papers because many papers have deliberately refused to publish the truth about the war crimes of the Bush adminstration.There is more than enough reliable sources of information that prove that Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, and approximately 20 others should be prosecuted for war crimes.
As reported by Ron Suskind in his book The Way of the World (June 08) Cheney along with Bush are also responsible for a phony letter contrived in 03 in the wake of their credibility-loss re: invasion of Iraq via revelations from Joseph Wilson, Habbush, et al that WMD were not existent. Out came a letter from the White House, purportedly from Habbush (comfortably paid off by that time), that Saddam and Al Qaeda were teamed--entirely false. Thence to FOX news etc. with resulting re-surge of credibility on this outright whopper--Nixon is smiling in his grave.
And as our former VP would say, "SO?".
Hey, we know Cheney is a crook, a thief and a murderer. Our government WILL NOT investigate or prosecute him. When you live in a cleptocratic plutocracy with the PR calling it a democracy, this soul killing behavior is par for the course. Cheney just laughs at all of us. We are one big pathetic joke to him. God help us because our Attorney General and our elected officials aren't going to do shit.
they would if we made them. too bad the protest movement is DEAD.
we all knew Obama would disappoint us where it really counted, didnt we? He capitulates to Wallstreet, perpetuates the wars, and lets Bush and co. get away with murder.
Unless Bush and Co are prosecuted for their crimes, it will happen again, and again, and again.....
"The only means of strengthening one's intellect is to make up one's mind about nothing, to let the mind be a thoroughfare for all thoughts." - John Keats
What now needs to be done is that citizens must arrest and detain these criminals. The constitution provides for just that sort of action along with the right to bare arms is the authority to use them! Of course we could support the ICC even if our government does not. We could capture these villians and have them tried by that court it has much more integrity than US courts, no where as corrupt!
Another point is that those that have the authority to act and do not are themselves "WAR CRIMINALS" that includes "OBAMA"!
Obama and the other Dims won't serve justice with respect to Cheney/Bush because they are/were in on the torture themselves.