Liberal Coalition Says Forget the Truth Commission, Bring on the Special Prosecutor

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http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/02/liberal-coalition-says-forget-the-truth-commission-bring-on-the-special-prosecutor.php?ref=dc3

Liberal Coalition Says Forget the Truth Commission, Bring on the Special Prosecutor
By Elana Schor - February 24, 2009, 10:08AM


Washington has been dominated for weeks by the debate over forming an independent "truth and reconciliation commission" to uncover details about human rights and civil liberties abuses committed during the Bush administration. Prominent Democrats from Sen. Patrick Leahy (VT) to Rep. John Conyers (MI) to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA) have indicated their support for the concept.

But one day after Barack Obama's Pentagon was lambasted by human rights groups for reporting that conditions are humane, a coalition of liberal advocacy groups is done with taking it slow. In a statement released this morning, the 20-plus groups ask Attorney General Eric Holder to directly appoint a special prosecutor to probe former Bush administration officials.

It remains to be seen whether today's statement will move minds in Congress, where the "truth commission" plan remains controversial. Still, this call is a perfect illustration of John Judis' recent message to the American left: Expand the playing field, and do not let the White House be the most left-leaning force in the capital.

Statement here:

We urge Attorney General Eric Holder to appoint a non-partisan independent Special Counsel to immediately commence a prosecutorial investigation into the most serious alleged crimes of former President George W. Bush, former Vice President Richard B. Cheney, the attorneys formerly employed by the Department of Justice whose memos sought to justify torture, and other former top officials of the Bush Administration.

Our laws, and treaties that under Article VI of our Constitution are the supreme law of the land, require the prosecution of crimes that strong evidence suggests these individuals have committed. Both the former president and the former vice president have confessed to authorizing a torture procedure that is illegal under our law and treaty obligations. The former president has confessed to violating the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

We see no need for these prosecutions to be extraordinarily lengthy or costly, and no need to wait for the recommendations of a panel or "truth" commission when substantial evidence of the crimes is already in the public domain. We believe the most effective investigation can be conducted by a prosecutor, and we believe such an investigation should begin immediately.

Signed By:

Center for Constitutional Rights
http://ccrjustice.org

The National Lawyers Guild
http://nlg.org

American Freedom Campaign Action Fund
http://americanfreedomcampaign.org

High Road for Human Rights Advocacy Project
http://www.highroadforhumanrights.org

After Downing Street
http://afterdowningstreet.org

Democrats.com
http://democrats.com

Gold Star Families for Peace
http://cindysheehansoapbox.com

Ann Wright, retired US Army Reserve Colonel and US diplomat
http://voicesofconscience.com

Delaware Valley Veterans for America
http://delvalvets4america.org

Voters for Peace
http://votersforpeace.us

Wisconsin Impeachment / Bring Our Troops Home Coalition
http://impeachwi.com

Backbone Campaign
http://backbonecampaign.org

CODE PINK: Women for Peace
http://codepink4peace.org

Velvet Revolution
http://velvetrevolution.us

Justice Through Music
http://jtmp.org

Progressive Democrats of America
http://pdamerica.org

Brad Blog
http://bradblog.com

Cities for Peace
http://citiesforpeace.org

National Accountability Network

Northeast Impeachment Coalition
http://neimpeach.org

Republicans for Impeachment
http://republicansforimpeachment.com

Op Ed News
http://opednews.com

Marcus Raskin, cofounder of Institute for Policy Studies, member of editorial board of The Nation, member of the special staff of the National Security Council in Kennedy Administration

The Progressive
http://progressive.org

Peace Team
http://peaceteam.net

Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS)
http://afterdowningstreet.org/vips

Defending Dissent Foundation
http://defendingdissent.org

Grassroots America
http://grassrootsamerica4us.org

Media Freedom Foundation/Project Censored
http://projectcensored.org

Peace Action
http://peace-action.org

Grandmothers Against the War
http://grandmothersagainstthewar.org

World Can't Wait
http://worldcantwait.net

United for Peace and Justice
http://unitedforpeace.org

Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space
http://space4peace.org

War Crimes Times
http://warcrimestimes.org

Veterans for Peace 099
http://veteransforpeace.org

Veterans for Peace 26
http://veteransforpeace.org

Veterans for Peace
http://veteransforpeace.org

Naomi Wolf, author of "End of America: Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot," and "Give Me Liberty: A Handbook for American Revolutionaries"

Iraq Veterans Against the War
http://ivaw.org

Daniel Ellsberg, Truth-Telling Project
http://ellsberg.net