National Lawyer’s Guild Says John Yoo Is A War Criminal

h/t Think Progress and the formal NLG (National Lawyer’s Guild) Press Release:

NATIONAL LAWYERS GUILD CALLS ON BOALT HALL TO DISMISS LAW PROFESSOR JOHN YOO, WHOSE TORTURE MEMOS LED TO COMMISSION OF WAR CRIMES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 9, 2008

Contact:
Marjorie Cohn, NLG President, marjorie@tjsl.edu; 619-374-6923
Heidi Boghosian, NLG Executive Director, director@nlg.org; 212-679-5100, x11

NATIONAL LAWYERS GUILD CALLS ON BOALT HALL TO DISMISS LAW PROFESSOR JOHN YOO, WHOSE TORTURE MEMOS LED TO COMMISSION OF WAR CRIMES

New York. In a memorandum written the same month George W. Bush invaded Iraq, Boalt Hall law professor John Yoo said the Department of Justice would construe US criminal laws not to apply to the President’s detention and interrogation of enemy combatants. According to Yoo, the federal statutes against torture, assault, maiming and stalking do not apply to the military in the conduct of the war.

The federal maiming statute, for example, makes it a crime for someone “with the intent to torture, maim, or disfigure” to “cut, bite, or slit the nose, ear or lip, or cut out or disable the tongue, or put out or destroy an eye, or cut off or disable a limb or any member of another person.” It further prohibits individuals from “throwing or pouring upon another person any scalding water, corrosive acid, or caustic substance” with like intent.

Yoo also narrowed the definition of torture so the victim must experience intense pain or suffering equivalent to pain associated with serious physical injury so severe that death, organ failure or permanent damage resulting in loss of significant body functions will likely result; Yoo’s definition contravenes the definition in the Convention Against Torture, a treaty the US has ratified which is thus part of the US law under the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause. Yoo said self-defense or necessity could be used as a defense to war crimes prosecutions for torture, notwithstanding the Torture Convention’s absolute prohibition against torture in all circumstances, even in wartime. This memo and another Yoo wrote with Jay Bybee in August 2002 provided the basis for the Administration’s torture of prisoners.

“John Yoo’s complicity in establishing the policy that led to the torture of prisoners constitutes a war crime under the US War Crimes Act,” said National Lawyers Guild President Marjorie Cohn.

Congress should repeal the provision of the Military Commissions Act that would give Yoo immunity from prosecution for torture committed from September 11, 2001 to December 30, 2005. John Yoo should be disbarred and he should not be retained as a professor of law at one of the country’s premier law schools. John Yoo should be dismissed from Boalt Hall and tried as a war criminal.

The National Lawyers Guild was founded in 1937 as an alternative to the American Bar Association, which did not admit people of color, the National Lawyers Guild is the oldest and largest public interest/human rights bar organization in the United States. Its headquarters are in New York and it has chapters in every state.

What’s The Difference Between Iraq and Alabama?

Alabamians smoke their camels?

According to Redstate (I don’t like linking there, since I’m revolting from all things “redstateish“) there is no difference between the two when comparing our occupying Iraq to Germany, Japan, and the “South” (as in the confederate states). The Familographer hooked me up with this article by Bill Scher that explains to the koolaid crowd why this is so asinine.

As I said in my previous post, “Claiming a 100-year occupation in Iraq would be like Germany or Korea reveals an immense lack of foreign policy knowledge, judgment and vision. The situations and political dynamics have absolutely no similarity.” (For more on that point, check out Agence France Presse, Coalition for a Realistic Foreign Policy, Talking Points Memo, Booman Tribune, The Newshoggers and Juan Cole.)

But hey, at least Germany and Japan are like Iraq in that they are other countries.

I can’t believe I am wasting 15 seconds of my life to type this, but having military bases in Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina does not constitute a permanent occupation. Does RedState really believe that 140 years after the Civil War, American troops have a “peace time standing presence” in the American south?

Conservatives are still flogging the notion that they hold an innate superiority on national security and foreign policy.

The disaster of Iraq has already stripped the veneer off of that fallacy.

Trying to claim that having military bases in Iraq for 100 years — when our own intelligence community says “fear of Western domination” is what fuels the “jihadist movement” — is just like having military bases in our own country, is probably not the best way to regain the public’s trust on national security.

Bush Is Trying To Kill Us

Justice in Birmingham

A federal judge has ordered the United States to pay legal fees, costs and interest to a Huntsville entrepreneur who was wrongly charged by U.S. Attorney Alice Martin with violations of arms export rules. While the exact amount of the award remains to be fixed, attorneys for the claimant say they will be seeking more than $500,000.

Alice Martin, the U.S. Attorney in Birmingham, brought the case and was directly involved in managing it. She appears to have withdrawn opposition to the claims for reimbursement in an effort to avoid being forced to give testimony in a case in which she is accused of being motivated by improper, possibly racist, motives. As previously noted, the defense contended that Martin set out consciously to destroy Alex Latifi and the Huntsville-based manufacturing business that he ran. Latifi, an Iranian-American, had beat out some major defense industry interests by putting in a low bid for the manufacture of some helicopter parts. Martin sought pre-emptive relief, freezing Latifi’s business assets and effectively putting him out of business a year before she secured an indictment. But as the case came to its first days in court, it turned out that Martin had no basis for her actions and that Latifi was clearly innocent of the charges she had brought against him and fanned aggressively in the press.

Judge Inge Johnson ended Martin’s case after concluding that the prosecutors had no evidence for the charges they were bringing. When Martin moved to have it concluded with no further consequence, Judge Johnson concluded the exoneration of Latifi did not end the case. There was a major issue to be confronted: Latifi’s claims for damages based on the misconduct of the U.S. Attorney. In a related matter, another federal judge allowed a defendant to withdraw a guilty plea obtained by Martin and dismissed the case, suggesting that the guilty plea arrangement was a “manifest injustice.” The Birmingham News reports:

Latifi, an engineer trained at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, will be able to collect about $500,000 in expenses, said his Birmingham attorney, Henry Frohsin. Latifi contends that he was selected for prosecution under arms-export laws because of his ethnic background. “I can’t understand destroying someone’s life for no reason,” said Latifi, a 1973 immigrant who became a citizen in 1980. “All I can be thankful for is that I am not in jail.”

Latifi faced 25 years in prison for his alleged crimes. His Huntsville machine shops are silent after government business disappeared. Axion had been making machined parts for the U.S. military since 1984. The judge’s ruling filed late Wednesday said the fees were awarded under the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act, a 2000 law designed “to give owners innocent of any wrongdoing the means to recover their property and make themselves whole after wrongful government seizures.”

The ruling came unexpectedly. A hearing in the matter at which testimony was to be taken was set for April 12. Latifi’s counsel had promised that it had commanding evidence concerning the misconduct of Martin and her office.

Johnson’s ruling also said the government has withdrawn its request for a certification from the court endorsing the asset seizure as having had a reasonable cause. That eliminates any chances for Axion’s lawyers to demand a hearing to examine the Justice Department’s memos, legal papers and investigative methods, said Frohsin, a lawyer with the Birmingham office of Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz. “What was so important that they were trying to hide?” said Jim Barger, another Baker, Donelson lawyer who worked on the case.

It looks to me as if Alice Martin was concerned about the prospect that she would be placed under oath. Martin filed a motion to quash the subpoena issued against her, which was denied, then a motion to reconsider. These documents reflect a slithering invocation of prosecutional discretion to cloak misconduct and threaten the court with the involvement of Solicitor General Paul D. Clement–the sole senior Department official to survive the recent scandals over politically abusive conduct–in the matter. The court record reflects an extraordinary seven days of hearings and argument related to Martin’s efforts to avoid being forced to testify under oath. When these efforts failed, Martin withdrew her request for a finding that she had acted with reasonable cause and agreed to an award of damages under the claimant’s most aggressive theory. The only upside of this for Martin was that it would bolster her arguments against being forced to testify about her management of the case. However, although the current procedural setting of the case is complex, it appears that Martin and some of her associates may still be required to testify.

In sum: the taxpayers may be out $500,000 or more on account of prosecutorial misconduct (not taking into account the taxpayer’s funds expended on bringing a bogus case, which was probably several million), and Martin’s handling of the case now appears to be driven by her fear of being forced to account for her own conduct under oath. This case cries out for an internal Justice Department probe.

ReTHUGlicans: The “List”

A List of Republican felons and their indicted brethren

1998-2008

Abramoff, Jack
Adams, Tom
Adams, Jim
Aiken, Steve
Alishtari, Abdul Tawala Ibn Ali
Allen, Bob
Allen, Claude
Allen, Bill
Alonos, Miram
Anderson, Tom
Ankeney, Randal David
Aragoncillo, Leandro
Atchison, John David R.
Bakker, Jim
Barnes, Martin G.
Barter, Merrill Robert
Beaird, John
Bena, Parker J.
Beres, Lou
Beverage, Sam
Bird, Calvin
Bland, Wilton Frederick
Blessing, Louis
Bloom, Philip H.
Blundell, Brian
Bobrick, Bill
Boggio, Scott
Botes, Stephan
Brady, Kevin
Brock, Darrell
Broderick, Thomas
Brooks, Howard L.
Brown, Shawn
Bryan, John
Bundy, Ted
Burcham, Tom
Burt, John Allen
Butler, John
Cagle, Charles “Chig”
Cappelli, Angelo
Carona, Deborah
Carona, Michael S.
Carpenter, Jared
Carroll, Cherie
Casseday, Randall
Childers, W.D.
Childs, Keola
Cianci, Vincent
Clark, Donald Ross
Coan, Kevin
Collins, John J.
Colyandro, John
Condos, James
Constantine, Lee
Cooper, Nathan
Corrigan, Larry
Cortelyou, Scott Eller
Coughlin ,Paul
Coutretsis, Andrea
Craig, Larry
Cramer, Carey Lee
Crawford, Lester
Cunningham, Randy “Duke”
Curtin, John R.
Dasen Sr., Richard A.
Davis, Ronnie
Davison, Pat
DeLay, Tom
Delgaudio, Richard A.
DeShon, Ronnie Gene
Dibble, Peter
Dickens, Joshua
Disponett, Dave
Doolittle, John
Doyle, Dan
Doyle, Victoria
Doyle, Brian J.
Druen, Dan
Elizondo, Nicholas
Ellef ,Peter
Elliott, Matthew Joseph
Ellis, James
Fabian, Alan
Fawell, Scott
Federici, Italia
Fields, Vincent
Fleischman, Donald
Fletcher, Earnie
Floren, Livvy
Flory, Michael
Floyd, Larry Dale
Foggo, Kyle “Dusty”
Fox., Galen
Franklin, Larry
Frankum, Eddie
Gallagher, Dennis
Gardner, Richard
Garofalo, Dave
Gillin, William
Giordano, Philip
Glavin, Matthew
Gosek, John

Goyette, Richard R.
Graves, David
Grethen, Mark A.
Griles, J. Steven
Groe, Trish
Hamilton Jr.,  John J.
Hansen, Shaun
Harbin, Ben
Harding, Russell
Harris, Mark
Hazlette, Tim
Healy, Chris
Heaton, William
Heldreth, Howard Scott
Hicks, Brian
Hiller, Bradley R.
Hintz, Mike
Hoffman, Debra V.
Holland, Robert
Hooks Sr., Michael
Hopfengardner, Bruce D.
Horsley, Neal
Houchen, Pamela J.
Hughes, J. Marshall
Hurley, Steven M.
Iadanza, Richard
Matricarid, Edmund III
Isenhour, James K.
James, Rayfield
Janklow, Bill
Jensen, Scott
Jones, Jody
Juliano, Richard
Kaelin, Jeffrey
Kauffman, Allen D.
Kelty, Matt
Kerik, Bernie
Kidan, Adam
Kimmerling, Earl “Butch”
King, Lawrence E. “Larry” Jr.
Klaudt, Ted
Kline, Ronald C.
Kohring, Vic
Kontogiannis, Thomas
Kott, Pete
Lambert, James R.
Law, David
Lay ,Michael Aaron
Leonard, Richard
Leung, Katrina
Libby, I. Lewis “Scooter”
Limbaugh, Rush
Linnen, Stephen
Loren-Maltese, Betty
Lukens, Donald “Buz”
Luongo, Gerald J.
Malloy, Patrick G.
Malone, Lance
Martin, Hayes
Mathes Jr., James R.
Matricardi, Edmund III
Matthews, Jon
McCurnin, Joseph
McGee, Charles
McGuire, Patrick Lee
Meadows, Cory
Merla, John
Michael, John
Mixon, Michael
Monteleone Jr., Joseph
Morency, Nicholas
Murgatroyd, Dick
Murphy Jr., Glenn
Nash, James J.
Neal, Rebecca
Newton, Chris
Ney, Bob
Nielsen, Jeffrey
Nighbert, Bill
Nixon Jr., Kenneth E.
Noe, Bernadette
Noe, Thomas
Noonan, Thomas J.
Novak, Lawrence
Nugent, Johnny
O’Grady, Raymond
Oleen, Lana
Owens, Leonard Ray
Palughi, Anthony J.
Parker, Brent
Patti, Jeffrey
Pazuhanich, Mark
Privette, Coy
Prokos, Alexandra
Pugh, Edward
Rader, Dennis L.
Randall, Tom
Randall, Jeffrey Kyle
Rathmann, Rolf
Ravenel, Thomas
Raymond, Allen
Regola, Robert
Renzi, Rick
Rice, Steve
Ringo, Robert R.
RoBold, Warren
Rosen, Steve
Rowland, John
Rudy, Tony
Russell, Beverly
Ryan, George
Safavian, David Hossein
Scanlon, Michael
Scannapieco, Matthew V.
Schepp, Brent
Schofield, Robert T.
Schrenko, Linda
Seidensticker, Mark
Shortridge, Tom
Siljander, Mark Deli
Skandalakis, Mitch
Skiles, Paul
Smeltzer Jr., Fred C.
Smith, Rick
Stanley, Roger “The Hog”
Stillwell, Roger
Stockman, David
Stroupe Jr, Wade
Stumbo, Bobby
Swartz, David
Symington, Fife
Taff, Adam
Taft, Bob
Tanonaka, Dalton
Tate, Mark
Tebano, Armando
Teele, Arthur
Temple, Merle
Thompson, Joe
Thompson, Donald
Thomson, Gary Russell
Tobin, James
Treffinger, James
Tristano, Michael
Turbyfill, Basil
Van Vleet, Rick D.
Vanderwall, Robin
Velella, Guy J.
Vellanoweth, Robert
Volz, Neil
Wade, Mitchell
Warner, Larry
Weissmann, Keith
Weldon ,Terance
Westberg, Craig
Westlake, John E. “Jack”
Westmoreland, Keith
Weyhrauch, Bruce
White, C. Stephen
Wilkes ,Brent
Williams, Robin
Wilson, Bob
Zachares, Mark
Zimmerman, Al

This list is found at Republican Offenders and they are tracking the corrupt neo-con associated Thugs who call themselves Republicans (totally destroying the brand). Check in regularly, cause the list just grows and grows daily.

Report: Lack of health insurance takes toll on Tenn

From the Nashville Business Journal:

Nearly 13 Tennesseans die every week due to lack of health insurance, according to a report published this week by Families USA.

That number means about 676 Tennesseans died in 2006 for the same reason, the national organization for health-care consumers says. And between 2000 and 2006, the Washington, D.C.-based organization estimates more than 3,600 Georgians between the ages of 25 and 64 died because they did not have health insurance.

Nationally, about 22,000 Americans without health insurance died between 2000 and 2006.

Families USA says uninsured adults are more likely to be diagnosed with a disease, such as cancer, in an advanced stage, which greatly reduces their chance of survival.

“Our report highlights how our inadequate system of health coverage condemns a great number of people to an early death, simply because they don’t have the same access to health care as their insured neighbors,” said Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA. “The conclusions are sadly clear — a lack of health coverage is a matter of life and death for many people.”

The report says in 2006 about 18 percent of those 25-64 living in Tennessee were uninsured.

18% Uninsured, but I wonder what the number is for “under”insured (like I will find myself after an upcoming surgery). I make a bit more money than most people in the SE, but much of my “extra” money goes to health insurance and their lack of coverage (to the tune of $25,000 out of pocket last year).

This is but one harrowing scenario of devastation for Americans and it is evident that the SE is taking a huge hit.

The Crockering of America… uh… uh… uh…