OxBlog

Thursday, May 07, 2009

# Posted 11:45 PM by Ariel David Adesnik  

OBAMA, HERALD OF CHANGE: In the words of the certainly-not-conservative Jeffrey Rosen,
Barack Obama is trying to split the difference on torture. He wants to move forward--no messy dwelling on the Bush-Cheney era--except that he'll look backward if forced. There will be no independent commission to hold top-ranking officials politically accountable. But, if Attorney General Eric Holder wants to prosecute the Bush lawyers who defended the legality of waterboarding--John Yoo, Jay Bybee, and Steven Bradbury--well, the president won't stand in the way.

What does Obama gain by this approach? For starters, he has delegated the hard choice to his subordinate--and has left himself room to maneuver once more if the political winds shift further.
At least he's living up to my expectations.

Cross-posted at Conventional Folly
(2) opinions -- Add your opinion

Comments:
He wants to move forward--no messy dwelling on the Bush-Cheney era--except that he'll look backward if he sees political advantage in criticizing Bush.

There, fixed it for him.
 
Hey Tim. I appreciate your comments. These days, I monitor the comments section more closely at Conventional Folly, so feel free to post over there if things are quiet on OxBlog.
 
Post a Comment


Home