I’ve never been to Spain, but I kinda like the justice system. Yglesias summarizes the latest news:
For a long stretch of the late Bush years I wondered if Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzón, famous for his prosecution of Pinochet and other efforts to assert universal jurisdiction over international human rights law, would put the Bush administration in his sights. And now it seems he has: “The officials include former attorney general Alberto Gonzales, former undersecretary of defense for policy Douglas Feith, former Cheney chief of staff David Addington, Justice Department officials John Yoo and Jay S. Bybee, and Pentagon lawyer William Haynes.”
I don’t actually know Bybee or Haynes that well. I wasn’t aware that Feith was that involved with detainee treatment rather than ginning up a war, but I can’t say that it would surprise me. Garzón’s issuing a warrant wouldn’t actually get them sent to his court, but would get the gears of justice slowly turning.
Peter Finn and Jody Warrick a great article in the Post whose headline speaks for itself: detainee’s harsh treatment foiled no plots. The whole thing on Abu Zubaida, who we alleged was a chief of operations for Al Qaeda, is worth reading, but I’d highlight this passage:
Abu Zubaida quickly told U.S. interrogators of Mohammed and of others he knew to be in al-Qaeda, and he revealed the plans of the low-level operatives who fled Afghanistan with him. Some were intent on returning to target American forces with bombs; others wanted to strike on American soil again, according to military documents and law enforcement sources.
Such intelligence was significant but not blockbuster material. Frustrated, the Bush administration ratcheted up the pressure -- for the first time approving the use of increasingly harsh interrogations, including waterboarding.
In short, we got all we could get via conventional methods. The return on investment for selling our soul was nothing.
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