Round up the Usual Suspects....

In an article in today's Inquirer, Arlen Specter comments on the just disclosed 2005 legal opinions on interrogations that clearly show that Bush and his idiot minion, Abu Gonzo made conscious and clear efforts to institutionalize torture as a policy, whether Congress made it explicitly illegal or not. Aside from the fact that it is simply pathetic that we as a nation are even having a discussion on whether thumbscrews and waterboarding are appropriate behaviors, Specter's indignation is really mind numbing.

"I think they're shocking," he said.
He said Congress voted to ban "cruel, inhumand and degrading treatment in December 2005 without knowing that the Justice Department had already decided that the CIA's methods did not violate that standard.
"I think the administration has a duty to inform Congress about these opinions," Specter said.

Oh, come on, Arlen. Nobody that hasn't been huffing spray paint for the past eight years could be shocked by this. It fits the pattern of utter disdain that this administration has shown for the rule of law and the Constitutional balance of power that this country was founded upon. Bush has made it clear, whether it be through signing statements, recess appointments, cronyism, fired prosecutors, or the general politicization of the Justice Department that he has no time for our Constitutional Democracy and that in his own words, a dictatorship would be much easier, if he were the dictator.

How can you be shocked Arlen? In making another empty threat to use the power of the purse to hold this administration accountable for their disdain for the Congress, you said:

Institutionally, the presidency is walking all over Congress at the moment. If we are to maintain our institutional prerogative, that may be the only way we can do it.…

It is true that we have no assurance that the president would follow any statute that we enact.

That was in May of 2006.