The policy issues regarding detainees got taken up early on, in the NSC. These discussions progressed along until an *impasse* was reached – Powell and Myers, basically State and DoD, drawing the line somewhere, probably concurrent with the UCMJ, and said, “No further!”

Bush then directed Gonzo to make an “end-around” through ‘restricted’ channels’ (aka – UE Compartmentalization) and have drafted, in Secret – without seeking State or DoD legal concurrence – all the Opinions that went down the long dark path to Torture and Hell – after the impasse.

So, it seems clearer, at least at this point, that there were some among the Prinicipals who had Principles, and some who didn’t.

But, it seems there’s also plenty more to come…

This story breaking now is practically a cue-call for Bush to go straight to his Core Argument – He’s the UE, and whatever he says is Law, regardless of the Rule of Law and Treaties.

This story was ’so on target,’ it ‘got the drop’ on Bush – he had to go straight to his “and I approved” UE Defense – no more propped-up ‘bullet-catchers’ like Libby to get in the way.

We’re down to ‘testing’ the ‘argument’ behind Bush’s Frightening Assertions of Unitary Executive Power that Whitehouse alerted US to.

Bush has been ‘caught’ and now he’s Daring – just like his SOTU a few months ago was Defying – US to come ‘take the battery off his shoulder.’

“Go ahead, I dare you!”

He ordered Torture – should We have expected anything less?

Note the number of ‘true conservatives’ (i.e., Bruce Fein, Goldsmith) who have publicly opposed Bush admin legal interpretations and UE notions.

Note the number of former military officers who have come out –publicly — against this administration. The US has never seen so many statements of ‘conscience’ from retired military opposing an administration.

Then note the phenomenal turnout in Democratic primaries; in my state, we’ve never seen anything even close to this turnout.

Note the sobering differences between the coverage of Petraeus/Crocker testimony last fall, as opposed to last week — now, even Republican electeds voiced open criticism of the war.

Still not convinced that attitudes are shifting in the US?
Then read this essay by prominent evangelical, Jim Wallis, who (along with the WaPo’s E.J.Dionne, plus some good NYT reporting) is analyzing and explaining the collapse of the neocon/WallStreet/evangelical coalition that managed to put Reagan into office, then Bush41 into office, and 12 years later squeak Bu$hCheney into office:
http://blog.beliefnet.com/gods…..bee-b.html

[Excerpt:]Huckabee’s campaign, and the failure of the Religious Right to support him, has been one of the most interesting and puzzling stories of this primary season…

Note that the reporting style of **some** media is (finally!!) including more context and background information; when placed against statistics, it becomes embarrassingly obvious that current Bu$hCo is mostly engaged in desperate wishful thinking.

Then look at the commodities indexes, or the financial indicators.
Then check the American Bar Assn website and note their focus on ensuring that torture policies and DoJ corruption are addressed — topics not traditionally at the top of the ABA annual agendas. (When in US history has the nations Bar Assn come out against a sitting administration? Maybe bmaz knows, but I suspect this is a first.)

Just because people aren’t rioting in the streets doesn’t mean that millions of us aren’t collassally pissed off, angry, and appalled.

Don’t believe me yet?
Look at how much campaign money has been raised by candidates — particularly conservative/libertarian Ron Paul. When people are so pissed that they’re willing to donate money, you can reasonably predict they’re going to vote in November.

And I’m not predicting a Dem blowout, but the respective bank balances between the Dems and the Republicans signify a decided lack of interest in more market-fundamentalist, corporatist, militariest ideology.

The military-industrial complex still has a stranglehold, but it seems to be weakening. It’s based on forms of energy that have become extremely costly, and it doesn’t appear to be sustainable.

I was at one of the early gatherings in DC in 2003; full of families from the midwest and South, many buses, strollers. We covered the city. Media flew over a few times in helicopters, were dead silent on the “evening news”, then later low-balled the crowd population by a factor of five. Admin folks were dead silent too.

Not to get Vice Presidential on you or anything, but that just makes it like nearly every single civil rights march from the Montgmery days on; I think you’ll find that even the 1963 March on Washington had its numbers greatly lowballed, though it did certainly have a significant press impact.

Direct action takes a lot of persistence, you can’t just show up one find spring day and expect that to do it.

With some irony, I am listening now to Justice Scalia talking to a group of high school students, and he opened his remarks by praising the U.S. Constitution, lamenting that it seemed not to be revered much anymore, and going on to praise the importance of the Constitution (”It is what continues to bind us together.”)

Maybe the Bush Crime Syndicate would not fare so well before the bar of the SCOTUS as some have feared.

His opening remarks might be worth calling attention to.

Bob in HI

Viva La Blogs!

I hear these people talking, and wonder what kind of reality they’re living in. It doesn’t sound like the same planet, even. It’s getting to where you can just about spot them by the disconnect.

Both of these purposes were wrongful, and inconsistent with the proper use of the Attorney General’s opinion power. Criminal investigators may well conclude that this act joined John Yoo in a joint criminal enterprise with the persons who devised and pushed implementation of the torture policies.

Indeed, this is not entirely a speculative matter. We will shortly learn in the mass media that some prosecutors have already reached that conclusion and that the preparation of a criminal case is underway.

Cross-posted at EW.

I can’t for the life of me, figure out why more people are not outraged and marching in the streets for impeachment. I do think part of it is that these greedy-corporate crooks keep the middle-and-lower classes so busy working overtime and two jobs that it is hard for many to find time or energy to keep up with the details of this administration’s crimes and to mobilize any activiism. Thank goodness for FDL, EW and others.