The Political Fish

Scott Fenstermaker.

This guy showed himself to be a real treat in his interview with Bill O’reilly. Now, I am by no means O’Reilly’s biggest fan, but I appreciate this interview because as Mr. Fenstermaker continuously refused to give actual answers to any questions, O’Reilly challenged him on every one of them, and called it what it was.

I realize someone has to represent the 9/11 terrorists, since our less than brilliant AG Eric Holder has decided to try them in civilian court with full Constitutional rights, that he will undoubtedly violate, but this guy is a special type of trial lawyer.  It almost appears that he has no soul whatsoever…but I cannot make that statement definitively.

As a little bit of a sidebar note…this man is a trial lawyer. Our government is made up by a vast majority of trial lawyers. Sadly, it seems that these days they are both cut from the same mold.

He wants a show trial. The terrorists want a show trial. It’s pretty clear that the administration and Department of Justice want a show trial. They are going to get just that, and America will be worse because of it.

This at least according to Congressional dirtbag Jim Moran, the esteemed Representative from Virginia.

Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA) has strong words for the Republicans opposing Attorney General Eric Holder’s plan to bring five 9/11 suspects to New York City to face trial.

“They see this as an opportunity to demagogue,” he said. “They will seize on any opportunity to do that, and that means they’ll even take a stand that’s un-American.”

Shortly after the Department of Justice decided to bestow Constitutional rights of American citizens on terrorists, CNN took a poll that asked the question of whether everyday Americans agreed with the decision to hold the trial of Khalid Sheik Muhammed in NYC. Not surprisingly, 64% of Americans believed that this trial should never take place in civilian court, in fact it belonged in a military court.

Two-thirds of Americans disagree with the Obama administration’s decision to try Khalid Sheik Mohammed in a civilian court rather than a military court, according to a new national poll. …

The poll indicates that 64 percent believe Mohammed should be tried in military court, with 34 percent suggesting that he face trial in civilian court. Six in 10 people questioned say Mohammed should be tried stateside, with 37 percent calling for the trial to take place at a U.S. facility in another country.

“The decision to bring Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in front of a civilian court is universally unpopular – even a majority of Democrats and liberals say that he should be tried by military authorities,” says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. “Despite that, most Americans say that he will get a fair trial in the U.S.”

Congratulations Jim Moran. Apparently 2/3 of your country are un-American by your borderline retarded logic.

From Newsweek:

Four knowledgeable sources tell NEWSWEEK that he is now leaning toward appointing a prosecutor to investigate the Bush administration’s brutal interrogation practices, something the president has been reluctant to do. While no final decision has been made, an announcement could come in a matter of weeks, say these sources, who decline to be identified discussing a sensitive law-enforcement matter. Such a decision would roil the country, would likely plunge Washington into a new round of partisan warfare, and could even imperil Obama’s domestic priorities, including health care and energy reform…

…”I hope that whatever decision I make would not have a negative impact on the president’s agenda,” he says. “But that can’t be a part of my decision.”

The question of torture (or enhanced interrogation, whichever you prefer) will go on for years. Whatever you may think on the issue, the legality of it should be without question. These methods of interrogation  used by the CIA during the Bush years were carefully crafted into the rule of law by the administrations legal team. For Eric Holder to go on a witch hunt for something that was legal at the time will do further damage to the national security of this country. It is irresponsible on his part, however it seems to jive with the administrations unspoken policy of putting America’s internal business out for the world to see.

We will have to wait and see just what Attorney General Holder does, my gut tells me that we will enter the new “bananna republic” era in US history where subsequent administrations will go after previous administrations in a never ending blood sport known as partisan politics. Say what you must about George Bush, but he was not stupid. He would not knowingly have his people go out and do things without protecting himself under the rule of law.

The pre-9/11 mindset was one that denied the evil of terrorism. They were not acts of terrorism, they were criminal acts. Normal law enforcement would be tasked to deal with these type of things. The wall of separation between these law enforcement agencies as well as the national security agencies in part led to the massive intelligence failure, resulting in September 11, 2001.

As I have written in this blog before, we have returned to that mindset, to the detriment of our national security interests abroad, and the safety of our citizens at home.

Without much fanfare or any MSM coverage, President Obama has ordered the FBI to issue Miranda warnings to captured fighters on the battlefields of Aghanistan. The Weekly Standard is reporting that this edict has taken place, according to a senior Republican on the House Intelligence commitee. What’s that phrase again, if you don’t learn from history, you are doomed to repeat it? For those who are not familiar with Miranda, my first question is where have you been? Have you never seen Law and Order? Secondly, Miranda Rights are the offshoot of a SCOTUS decision in 1966 which required law enforcement to remind American citizens suspected of a crime of their rights within the law. It is as follows: ” You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to speak to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided to you at government expense” Yes, the FBI will be telling these prisoners that their first right is to remain silent. Are we no longer interested in gathering intelligence that could prevent another attack, be it on the battlefield or terrorist attack at home? And then, yes we will be informing them of their right (and need) to have an attorney present. Not only that, when Mr. Extremist reaches into his pockets and finds out he is broke, we will retain that attorney for him, at the expense of the men and women he was just trying to kill. This is easily one of the most flawed policies I have ever come across in my lifetime.

Play out that scenario if/when Osama Bin Laden gets captured. Take the time in your own mind to let that one simmer. That is the order given to the FBI from our President. When will this man start to show a concern for the safety and security of this nation, and not the safety and security of those men who try to kill our soldiers? I don’t care if they are Muslim extremists, the German SS, or the British redcoats, this is an insane policy. Miranda is a right granted to U.S. citizens. These Muslim extremists are NOT common criminals and are not US citizens. Do we as a country need to sell out our security in an attempt to reach out to moderate Muslims?? The bottom line is that radical extremism will not go away if you reach out to moderates. Granting Muslim extremists the rights and priveledges of the U.S. judicial system to appease the moderate Muslim majority is flawed to say the least.

Other than the obvious issues stated above, where was Congress when all of this was going on? Last time I checked, there was supposed to be a check on power in Washington, and the Department of Justice and the FBI fall under the supervision of the Congress, and not ONLY the President.  The ranking member of the House Intelligence Commitee, Peter Hoekstra (R)-MI said today “When they mirandize a suspect, the first thing they do is warn them that they have the ‘right to remain silent, It would seem the last thing we want is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed or any other al-Qaeda terrorist to remain silent. Our focus should be on preventing the next attack, not giving radical jihadists a new tactic to resist interrogation–lawyering up.”

Mr. Hoekstra, I am ashamed to inform you that common sense and good logic are apparently no longer used on the Hill and in the White House. It’s appeasement at all cost. It seems the American citizens are the only ones eating these costs here recently.

2012 is coming soon. 2010…even sooner.