Leading Senate Dems Dismiss Report That Holder Promised No Torture Prosecutions

[kpete]

Source: Talking Points Memo

Leading Senate Dems Dismiss Report That Holder Promised No Torture Prosecutions
By Elana Schor - January 28, 2009, 3:24PM

The Washington Times reported today that Attorney General nominee Eric Holder has privately assured Sen. Kit Bond (MO) and other Republicans that the Obama DoJ will not prosecute intelligence officials who engaged in harsh interrogations.

A Bond aide told the Times that the senator "strongly considered blocking the nomination based on questions arising from some of Mr. Holder's public statements," but that Bond now planned to support the nomination after "having received assurances that was not intent on going after intelligence officials who acted in good faith."

The implication of the piece is fairly clear: Holder promised Bond to eschew prosecutions, and Bond promised not to block his nomination. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), chairman of the Judiciary Committee -- which approved Holder today -- strongly denied that such an exchange could have occurred.

"It would be completely wrong if a senator said, 'I'll vote for you if you promise to withhold prosecution of a crime'," Leahy told me. "No senator would make a request like that. It'd be improper."

Read more: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/01/leahy-its-im...

[Ian David]

1. The Washington Times can go choke on Rev. Moon's washcloth. n/t

[Donnachaidh]

2. Perhaps Leahy needs to step on the neck of the reporter at the Washington Times?

One real way of stopping this sort of nonsense is to jail a few of the spinmeisters. And their editors.

[L. Coyote]

3. drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip,

drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip

[Mme. Defarge]

4. So now

Holder needs to remove all doubt about his intentions by actually prosecuting torturers, making it clear that torture can never done "in good faith."

[No Elephants]

11. Thank you. torture in good faith is an oxymoron. No matter how large a majority we hand them,

Democrats just keep selling out. It's unreal.

[T Wolf]

5. Why is ANY "promise" to a repuke binding on anyone? Once Holder is in, prosecute away.

[OwnedByFerrets]

6. And of course Mr Leahy, NO Repug has EVER done anything

improper.

[Wizard777]

7. Leahy says, " It'd be improper." MY ASS! It would be bribery.

That's far beyond Improper. It's illegal and grounds for the Senators removal from office. Calling Sen. Bond a syphilitic druid would be "improper."

[maddezmom]

8. Aide: Holder Has Made No Decisions On Prosecuting Bush Officials

An aide to Eric Holder rejected a report Wednesday suggesting that the Attorney General nominee had pledged not to prosecute members of the Bush administration officials who were complicit in illegal harsh interrogations or torture.

"Eric Holder has not made any commitments about who would or would not be prosecuted," said the aide. "He explained his position to Senator Bond as he did in the public hearing and in responses to written questions."

The statement came hours after the Washington Times quoted Senate Judiciary Committee member Kit Bond saying Holder had privately insisted that he would not conduct such prosecutions. That report caused a stir on the Hill, where Democrats were left wondering whether Holder had privately placated Republican concerns that he would investigate Bush administration officials involved in interrogations.

Publicly, Holder has tried his best to be non-committal on what he would do in regard to torture investigations saying "nobody is above the law," but that he didn't "want to criminalize policy differences that may exist" between administrations. Because he defined waterboarding as torture during his confirmation hearings, it was assumed that he would have a responsibility to investigate the Bush administration admission that they have used waterboarding on a select few detainees. But in a question form offered to Republican Senators on Judiciary he was much more vague (indeed, cold to the idea) when asked if he would prosecute the matter.

more:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/28/aide-holder-ha...

[snot]

9. F*CK!!!!!

And cd someone pls explain to me -- I'd say again, only I've never had the round one explanation -- WHY did Obama vote for FISA forgiveness?

[Piewhacket]

10. it was expedient at the time...

(don't flame me I'm madder than you, than ANYONE, about it)

even i saw the expediency 'at the time' point, even if I didn't agree with it.
political judgement. he was trying to get elected. thank god he was elected.
I would have given up FISA opposition to get him elected (I just know I'm
gonna burn in hell for even thinking that. sigh. politics will eventually
send all of us to hell).

the hopeful news is. there is a pretty good argument the immunity provision
is unconstitutional. congress has not the power to abrogate the fourth amendment.
the ACLU is on the job. some think they have a good case. all others think with
their butt. so there you are.