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ADMINISTRATION REVERSES COURSE ON DETAINEE PHOTOS.
Jake Tapper reports that the Obama administration has decided against releasing photos that depict detainees being abused by U.S. soldiers, citing national security reasons. The photos were meant to be released as the result of a FOIA lawsuit filed against the Department of Defense by the ACLU.
There are obviously potential consequences for releasing the photos. But it's not as though American abuse of detainees in our custody is a secret matter--it's a self-serving argument that the government should be able to hide evidence of its abuse on such grounds. The public interest in seeing what was done in their name, in my view, trumps the government's right to obscure its own wrongdoing.
-- A. Serwer
COMMENTS (3)
There are more disturbing aspects of this decision.
Obama seems to be retreating in the face of venal right wing fearmongering. This leaves him exposed both to claims of waffling (from the right) and compromising with the devil (from the left).
More and more it seems that Obama only plays the DC game, not the one of true policy.
Posted by: Dan | May 13, 2009 2:48 PM
Obama seems to be losing his glow more and more each day with every little or big flipflop and bumble and evil decision. Is he morphing into Bush? Lots of us want to take our votes back from this charlatan. Should have gone with Nader.
Posted by: Anonymous | May 13, 2009 11:31 PM
President Obama said on Wednesday that he is seeking to block the release of photographs that depict American military personnel abusing captives in Iraq and Afghanistan, worrying that the images could “further inflame anti-American opinion.”
Ok, so they must be pretty bad, huh?
He said the pictures, which he has reviewed, “are not particularly sensational, but the conduct did not conform with the Army manual.”
Maybe not. I guess the pictures would inflame the opinion that we torture like pussies or something
He did not take questions from reporters, but said disclosing the photos would have “a chilling effect” on future attempts to investigate detainee abuse.
Yes, because the best way to encourage investigation of abuse is to hide all evidence of it. Or something.
Is it that they're so far from sensational that everyone will be all like " Do not want torture investigation"?
Or, is he just brazenly saying that we'll never investigate governmental wrong doing if we think there might be actual consequences?
In which case, who gives a fuck?
Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.
Posted by: MattMinus | May 14, 2009 10:45 AM