I stand corrected, having recently warned Americans not to attempt to emulate the intercine war raging through Britain's New Labour. To be honest I really could not see how the US system could possibly accommodate such a lusty political affair.
Happily Americans are an adventurous and innovative bunch, who have proved me wrong. You can imagine my mixed feelings coming across the headline: Bush faces Republican revolt over terror trials
But there you go, on the eve of a carefully prepared rehash of 9/11, designed to solidify a flagging vote ahead of the mid-term elections decency strikes.
The Rovian strategy misfired, with key Republicans balking at a White House proposal for legislation on military tribunals that would deny Guantánamo detainees the right to see classified evidence against them.
"It would be unacceptable legally in my opinion to give someone the death penalty in a trial where they never had heard the evidence against them," Lindsey Graham, a former military judge and a Republican senator from South Carolina who is a member of the armed services committee."
Onya Senator! You get my vote.
The report goes on that legislation authorising the National Security Agency wiretaps was also stalled yesterday after three Republican members of the Senate judiciary committee joined Democrats in demanding tighter controls on the administration's powers to order surveillance of phone calls and email of US citizens.
I don't know, but I'm starting to think Tony and George are those mythical twins separated at birth. Still, I did make some odd noises about the potential for the wheels to fall off Georges waggon in the lead up to this election.
3 comments:
It didn't take long for the Republican revolt on the detainee proposal to make it to the newswires. In the morning, the cable news people were all talking about how brilliant Bush and Rove were for forcing the detainee issue to the legislative table right before the 9/11 anniversary and the midterm elections as a way of putting Dems on the dfensive and getting the momentum back on the national security issue. By the end of the day, they were talking about the Republican revolt and the pentagon military lawyers opposed to the detainee proposal on legal grounds. So much for the brilliant political move.
I couldn't believe it. I actually waited a few hours then went back to check. Pretty dramatic stuff!
This is why I have been calling for the administration to put their proposal for tribunals to Congress.
One thing that remains strong in America is a legal tradition. The most litigious nation in the world is not going to pass a bill through Congress that flies in the face of the most basic rules of law and due process. These traditions can be sidelined momentarily in moments of panic (i.e. WWII internment camps). But 5 years after the fact it is a tough sell to throw aside the constitution so they can punish these few terrorists.
May the rule of law previal in America. It is all we have ever had.
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