Right on the heels of the abject lie that the 9/11 Commission said there was no link between al-Qaeda and Iraq, the media now tries to spin the hell out of the Abu Ghraib story, taking evidence which clearly shows that Bush did not authorize torture against prisoners and trying to make a connection which does not exist.
In an Associated Press piece with the headline "Bush Claimed Right to Waive Torture Laws" this is revealed:
Bush outlined his own views in a Feb. 7. 2002, document regarding treatment of al-Qaida detainees from Afghanistan. He said the war against terrorism had ushered in a "new paradigm" and that terrorist attacks required "new thinking in the law of war." Still, he said prisoners must be treated humanely and in accordance with the Geneva Conventions.
"I accept the legal conclusion of the attorney general and the Department of Justice that I have the authority under the Constitution to suspend Geneva as between the United States and Afghanistan, but I decline to exercise that authority at this time," the president said in the memo, entitled "Humane Treatment of al-Qaida and Taliban Detainees."
(Emphasis mine)
Of course, based on the rantings of the media one would think that Bush personally ordered the abuses at Abu Ghraib just out of being evil. Of course, that ignores the fact that the issue of interrogations and the treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib were entirely different issues. While someone should pay for Abu Ghraib, it should be those responsible, not using this issue as a political hammer to beat Bush with.
The fact is that this issue is once again being systematically distorted, spun, and manipulated in order to produce a nice set of Democratic talking points – just as the 9/11 Commission report, the African uranian issue, and Bush’s military records all have been. The media at best is a wing of the DNC, and at worst some of them have become apologists for Islamofascism worldwide. If this were World War II, the media would be making apologies for Hitler and arguing that the Jews had it coming.
Every right comes with an inherent responsibility, and a free press has the moral obligation to use that freedom in support of the truth, not their narrow political agenda.
Jay: You’re right on with your commentary.
We have a tremendous crisis in this country right now, and that is the transparent bias of the media.
The media really are trying to determine the outcome of the election and in so doing usurping a degree of power in this country not granted to them.