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The Problem with a Special Prosecutor on Torture
David Corn —
... There's been a lot of calls on the left for a special prosecutor to investigate the Bush administration's use of torture (or enhanced interrogation techniques, if you're Dick Cheney). While a special prosecutor might be necessary to determine if any crimes were committed, the appointment of a Patrick Fitzgerald-like investigator would in no way guarantee that the public will learn the full truth about this affair. As I write for Mother Jones: ...
Prosecute, Investigate or Move On?
Opinionator —
... is that last notion — “only those who torture can be trusted” — that Danner said must be dealt with. And doing so is very much about looking forward, not backward: To expose this dark counter-narrative to the light of day, to flood it with light and then destroy it, is the vital political task, not only for today but for tomorrow, when the pressures to believe it, in the wake of a further act of mass destruction could well prove irresistible. At Mother Jones today, David Corn also makes the case for investigation over prosecution , but from a different angle. Corn says that ...
In Search Of Sunlight
The Daily Dish | By Andrew Sullivan —
David Corn doesn't like the idea of a special prosecutor: These liberals all want to see alleged Bush administration wrongdoing exposed. But there's one problem with a special prosecutor: it's not his job to expose wrongdoing. A special prosecutor does dig up facts--but ...
I Agree With David Corn
JustOneMinute —
I agree with David Corn in believing that appointing a special counsel to poke at the terror debacle makes no sense. Prosecutors are not looking for "the truth" - they are looking for crimes they can indict and successfully prosecute, and most of what they find ends up hidden behind grand jury secrecy rules and never presented in court. That said, Corn and I differ here: Fitzgerald didn't investigate "the Bush Administration" "forcefully and thoroughly" - he put the White House under a microscope and gave the State Department a pass. Come on - Richard Armitage confessed ...
Jeremy Scahill: What if Instead of the Nuremberg Trials There Was Only a Truth Commission?
Politics on HuffingtonPost.com —
... This week it is Mother Jones Washington editor David Corn, who comes out in favor of a congressional investigation "that placed a premium on public disclosure" or "an independent commission." Corn describes how he recently warned a Congressmember who supports the appointment of a Special Prosecutor, "That's not necessarily a good idea." Corn talks about how a coalition of groups from the Center for Constitutional Rights and the ACLU to Democrats.com and MoveOn.org have all petitioned for a prosecutor: ...
Question Time for Cheney?
David Corn —
... The hearing with Zelikow is a start, but he's already said he doesn't know who in the White House attempted to eradicate his own memo. Whether or not there's a special prosecutor or a truth commission, congressional investigators should request all these records and start grilling the participants. And since Cheney is so eager to talk about this stuff these days, maybe they should begin with him. Given that he's called for disclosing information about the interrogation program, he shouldn't mind answering a few questions, right? ...
