Cheney beats back at attack of Republican scruples

The latest news on GWOT prisoner abuse is utterly chilling. Cheney and the Bush administration are threatening fellow Republicans, notably McCain, for considering an amendment to curb prisoner abuse. I guess its heartening that there are moral Republicans with the guts to stand up and object. But look at the Bushies' reaction.

From the International Herald Tribune, Cheney leading effort to thwart legislation on detainees:

Vice President Dick Cheney is leading a high-level White House lobbying effort to block legislation offered by Republican senators that would regulate the detention, treatment and trials of detainees held by the U.S. military.

In an unusual, 30-minute private meeting on Capitol Hill on Thursday night, Cheney warned three senior Republican members of the Armed Services Committee that their proposed legislation would interfere with the president's authority and ability to protect Americans against terrorist attacks.

I also found this article in an Arab press outlet that framed it a little differently, as you might expect. White House Opposes Ban on Detainee Mistreatment

Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain, who endured torture as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, said after meeting this week at the Capitol with Vice President Dick Cheney that he still intended to offer amendments next week "on the standard of treatment of prisoners."

Cheney told McCain, and two other senior Republican members on the Senate Armed Services Committee, that legislating these issues would interfere with the President.

I suppose the good news is that Cheney et al are consistent. They feel no shame about their proclivity for torture. They feel immune from Congressional oversight. We can expect more erosion of our moral authority in the world and more scandals as a result. Stay the course, indeed.

Tags: cheney, torture