Bush's choice

Until last week, most Americans probably could not have identified Alberto Gonzales as the White House Counsel. HIs profile has been raised considerably in recent days, by the disclosure of a January 25, 2002, memo he wrote to President Bush. In the memo, Gonzales described the Geneva Conventions as obsolete in the war on terror.

The memo has stirred outrage from many, but it leaves unanswered the question whether President Bush is directly responsible for the torture and abuse of prisoners at al Ghraib, Guantanamo and Afghanistan. However, President Bush has considerable indirect responsibility, through his appointment of Gonzales.

Robyn Blumner, Columnist for the St. Pete Times, writes there is "perhaps no figure who has his fingerprints on more short-sighted, backward and counterproductive Bush administration policies than does White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales." ("The man behind all the bad decisions," May 30, 2004) Gonzales was involved, off screen, in the move to keep secret Dick Cheney's energy task force records, the decision to block release of records of past presidents, and the authorization to try terrorist suspects using military tribunals.

Long before coming to the White House, Alberto Gonzales was signing his name to some outrageous documents. As a Texas Supreme Court Judge (again through appointment by President Bush), Gonzales issued a ruling hostile to whistleblowers, stirring alarm among many in the public interest sector. It was a warning President Bush apparently ignored, and one that may come back to haunt his legacy.

Ashcroft's war on whistleblowing

In the op-ed, Travesty of Justice, columnist Paul Krugman critiques Attorney General John Ashcroft's role in the war on terror.

Krugman notes an "absence of an major successful prosectuions" and a "lack of any major captures." Ashcroft's strategy, he said, is to, first, withhold the evidence, and then to "change the subject by making a dramatic announcement of a terrorist threat." As examples, Krugman cites Ashcroft's involvement in the cases of Sibel Edmonds (described in yesterday's Deep Harm, 6/14) and Jose Padilla.

The Padilla case was given no publicity until Coleen Rowley's June 6, 2000, testimony about FBI failures leading up to 9/11. Then, Ashcroft "announced that Mr. Padilla was involved in a terrifying plot" and, "instead of featuring Ms. Rowley, news magazine covers ended up featuring the "dirty bomber." (It should be noted that the introduction of the President's proposed legislation establishing a Department of Homeland Security also turned cameras away from Ms. Rowley.)

In addition, says Krugman, there is the Justice Department memo on torture, which Ashcroft last week refused to make available to Congress, but is now available on the Washington Post website. The memo, which basically states the president is above the law, came out late Sunday and, the next day, Ashcroft called a press conference announcing the indictman of a man plotting to blow up an Ohio shopping mall.

Mr. Krugman may be onto something. Notably, each of the incidents he cites involves a national security whistleblower (anonymous in one case). Ashcroft's interventions, and the President's failure to urge Congress to pass badly needed whistleblower protections, seriously threaten the credibility of the Administration's war on terror.

Whistleblowers ask for help uncovering 9/11 information

Two national security whistleblowers have issued a public plea for federal workers to come forward with any information that would assist investigation of the September 11 attacks. The plea, published in today's Government Executive, comes from Daniel Ellsberg, the "Pentagon Papers" whistleblower and Sibel Edmonds, a former FBI translator who has testified before the 9/11 commission regarding documents she saw clearing describing plans for the 9/11 attacks.

Attorney General John Ashcroft has asserted "state secrets privilege" to silence Edmonds, and has retroactivly classified related information the Justice Department gave Congress nearly two years ago. Edmonds says the information is important for others to know, in order to have a complete picture of the terrorist attacks, and she has filed suit to have the gag order lifted.

Edmonds hopes others in the Justice Department will come forward, because "their duty is first to the country," and because "these issues involve all of us." Ellsberg, who sacrificed much to reveal lies about the Viet Nam war, said, "Many, many lives are at stake here, and it's well worth telling the truth, even at personal sacrifice." (from Whistleblowers ask federal workers to come forward with 9/11 evidence, www.govexec.com, 6/14/04)

The 9/11 commission completes it investigative hearings this week, in Washington, D.C.

9/11 Commission's last hearings to look at origins of terror plot

This Wednesday and Thursday, the 9/11 Commission will hold its final hearings, looking at the origins of the 9/11 plot and the U.S. emergency response to the air attacks. Among those scheduled to testify are the chairman of the military Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Richard Myers, Mr. Patrick Fitzgerald, an attorney who prosecuted alleged terrorists in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, and law enforcement and intelligence experts. The hearings will be held at the National Transportation Safety Board Conference Center in Washington. (Star-Ledger, 6/11, and AP/Guardian, 6/11)

The Commission's final report is due July 26. According to an article in the Tucson Citizen (AP) 6/9, "Draft portions of the Sept. 11 commission's final report offer a stinging rebuke of the FBI and intelligence agencies but refrain from assigning blame
to individuals in government to avoid the appearance of partisan-ship, several commissioners say."