The Bush-Chaney Administration Must Be Held Accountable for Its Actions

Should there be a bi-partisan commission to investigate the authorization of torture by the previous administration? Should those who authorized and directed that practice be ostracized, condemned, and disgraced?

Certainly, yes to both questions.

Should the drafters of memoranda giving dubious legal arguments that would justify "water boarding" and similar extreme intensive interrogation techniques be criminally prosecuted? Should those elected and appointed government officials who defend the techniques if torture, including the former Vice President be prosecuted?

I admit that my feelings about investigating the behavior and the absence of any morality on the part of the past administration have vacillated between advocating a full bi-partisan inquiry and feeling that President Obama's absolute repudiation of the excesses of Bush-Chaney would be sufficient. It was my overall opinion that too much focus on the past might divert from the President's programs to reform the health care delivery system, stabilize the economy, end the financial crises and restore the United States' standing in the international community, all problems that he inherited.

I was wrong. It now appears that not only did the former administration ignore and, more, intentionally violate the laws and policies of this country but it then covered up the practices by concealing the acts from the elected representatives of the people. Moreover, the President's hope for a rational bi-partisan approach to the issues that beset us is doomed to failure. The GOP base, without which Republicans cannot win a primary, hates Mr. Obama with the fervor that was previously directed to Bill Clinton. It is time for President Obama to act on his mandate, take advantage of the Democrat majority in Congress and to push his agenda.

There must be a full and complete disclosure of the failure of the Bush-Chaney administration to obey the law - if only to make certain that this never happens again. This goal is so vital to the moral health of the country that any diversion from President Obama's programs must be risked. It will be up to the people, the Legislature and the new administration to make certain that the risk be minimal.

The former Vice President, taking advantage of a disinterested and indifferent President Bush, was instrumental in creating policies and techniques to be used by the Central Intelligence Agency and then was active in hiding these matters from the oversight committees of Congress charged with monitoring CIA actions.

The first difficulty in understanding what happened over the past eight years and appreciating the Darth Vader-like Chaney is the uncertainty of what matters are being discussed; the reasonable requirements of secrecy allow only a hint. Some areas of wrongdoing, cover-up and deliberate failure to follow the law as to Congressional oversight have been disclosed thus far; there may be others.

First, there was the issue of torture of those suspected of terrorist activity and, specifically, the issue of "waterboarding". These acts, part of what the former administration called "enhanced interrogation techniques", are acknowledged to have been committed in violation of United States law, international treaties to which we had adopted and ratified and accepted standards of decency. We had caused the prosecution of individuals who had executed such methods of torture as war criminals. Moreover, the evidence is clear that such torture does not result in accurate or helpful information, justifies retaliation against our military and serves to minimize any claim of moral superiority for our values.

Next the Valarie Plane episode where the identity of a covert CIA employee was intentionally disclosed by the office of Mr. Chaney in order to discredit a report by her husband which refuted a false claim by President Bush that Iraq had been attempting to purchase uranium from Niger. The disclosure of Ms Plane's identity was in clear violation of law and could have jeopardized the lives of CIA operatives throughout the world.

Third, the Chaney crowd promoted the "extraordinary rendition program" where we sent detainees to other countries where they could be tortured with impunity.

The truth is that we, or our elected representatives, do not have any idea of all schemes, programs and horrors that were dreamed up by the Chaney office. Seymour Hersh has reported the existence of secret assassination squads answerable and accountable only to the former Vice President. It is clear that domestic surveillance and wiretapping of American citizens, without warrant or any other independent supervision, was endemic. It seems reasonable to suggest that those being watched included those not who posed no real threat to the United States.

The point is that we simply do not know the extent and scope of the Cheney shenanigans. Even if some matters are best kept secret for national security reasons, there must be some review, some oversight by those outside of the Executive and the intelligence agencies. The responsibility for such oversight has been given to select members of the Legislature. The concealment of operations from those legislators holds far more danger to our nation than foreign or domestic terrorists.

And that is why a complete inquiry must proceed.