World-News

The Nation
by Elizabeth Holtzman

01/15/09

President Obama, on his first day in office, can make a number of changes that will mark a clean break with the Bush presidency. He can, and should, issue an executive order revoking any prior order that permits detainee mistreatment by any government agency. He should begin the process of closing Guantanamo, and he should submit to Congress a bill to end the use of military commissions, at least as presently constituted. Over the coming months he can pursue other reforms to restore respect for the Constitution, such as revising the Patriot Act, abolishing secret prisons and ‘extraordinary rendition,’ and ending practices, like signing statements, that seek to undo laws. While these steps are all crucial, however, it is not enough merely to cease the abuses of power and apparent criminality that marked the highest levels of George W. Bush’s administration. … To fully restore the rule of law and prevent any repetition of Bush’s misconduct, the abuses of his administration must be directly confronted...

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090202/holtzman


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

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Assessing the Bush Legacy
http://www.whale.to/b/assessing.html


Informant: Dorothee Krien

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Bush Tarnishes Medal of Freedom by Bestowing It on Uribe

Matthew Rothschild, The Progressive: "Bush keeps outdoing himself on his way out the door. On Tuesday, he gave the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Alvaro Uribe, the head of Colombia. Uribe has had close ties with rightwing paramilitary squads. And his government is a notorious human rights abuser."

http://www.truthout.org/011609F



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