The Legacy, cont'd

MANIFESTO

Glenn Greenwald has an excellent post this morning on the war crimes issue.

The recognition [that "to stand silent in the face of a war crime and do nothing"], finally, seems to be spreading -- beyond the handful of blogs, civil liberties organizations and activists who have long been trumpeting the need for this accountability. The New York Times Editorial Page today has a lengthy, scathing decree demanding prosecutions: "It would be irresponsible for the nation and a new administration to ignore what has happened . . . . A prosecutor should be appointed to consider criminal charges against top officials at the Pentagon and others involved in planning the abuse." Today, Politico -- of all places -- is hosting a forum which asks: "Should the DOJ consider prosecuting Bush administration officials for detainee abuse as the NYT and others have urged?" Even Chris Matthews and Chris Hitchens yesterday entertained (albeit incoherently and apologetically) the proposition that top Bush officials committed war crimes.

With Deadeye Dick now admitting that he approved of "enhanced coercive interrogation techniques," there's no question that the Bushies broke both federal and international laws.

Of course, I still believe that ultimately they will have done so with impunity.