Thursday, May 14, 2009

Torture: The difference between Cheney and Obama

"President Barack Obama declared Wednesday he would try to block the court-ordered release of photos showing U.S. troops abusing prisoners, abruptly reversing his position out of concern the pictures would "further inflame anti-American opinion" and endanger U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. The White House had said last month it would not oppose an appeals court ruling that set a May 28 deadline for releasing dozens of photos from military investigations of alleged misconduct. . . . Obama, explaining his change of heart on releasing the other photos, said they had already served their purpose in investigations of "a small number of individuals." Those cases were all concluded by 2004, and the president said "the individuals who were involved have been identified, and appropriate actions have been taken." . . . The effort to keep the photos from becoming public represented a sharp reversal from Obama's repeated pledges for open government, and in particular from his promise to be forthcoming with information that courts have ruled should be publicly available."

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation/story/1047343.html

The real difference between Cheney and Obama on torture?

Cheney was honest and consistent (if not correct) on the issue.

Obama "abruptly reverses his position", "changes his heart", "sharply reverses repeated campaign pledges" and ultimately adopts the Cheney position. Remember when Obama said "concern that the pictures would further inflame anti-American opinion and endanger U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan" was a bogus excuse?

No comments: