Attorney General nominee Michael Mukasey, who was once considered a sure thing by many politicians and analysts, could be heading for the exit soon because of one small matter: torture. Simply put, Mukasey refuses to state whether or not he believes waterboarding is a form of torture. Granted, if I were in Mukasey's shoes, I might be a bit hesitant to answer the question as well. By officially pronouncing his belief that waterboarding is torture and, thus, violates the Geneva Conventions as well as the McCain Anti-Torture law, Mukasey might well be obligating himself to prosecute anyone known to have ordered the use of or partcipated in waterboarding, including a couple of guys named George and Dick.
It comes as no surprise, then, that President George W. Bush decided to publicly defend Mukasey's stance on torture as presented at his confirmation hearings. And it comes as even less of a surprise that the President defended his appointee with the logic of a brain-damaged chihuahua as well:
So that was Bush's best defense? "He doesn't know whether we use that technique or not!" Come again? I thought the question was whether or not Mr. Mukasey believes waterboarding is torture, not whether or not he believes the United States uses the technique in its interrogation process. Besides, I thought just about everybody assumed we use waterboarding by now, so what does that question matter, anyway?!!? I also appreciate the additional "it doesn't make any sense to tell the enemy whether we use those techniques or not" argument. Really? Me thinks it's a safe bet that our enemies aren't expecting their jail cells to come with a box of chocolate and a mini-bar. Oh, yeah - and if they're willing to die for their cause (as many of these extremists are), I don't think an extended holiday at the waterboarding park is going to be useful in getting any information out of them anyway. It is fairly accepted psychology that the two common reactions to being tortured are for the strong to resist completely and for the weak to say anything to stop the pain. Under those conditions, it's probably just as practical to ask these suspected terrorists if they know who the last National League player to hit .400 was (Giants first baseman Bill Terry is the answer, by the way - he hit .401 in 1930). In no universe with which I am familiar does the President's "defense" of Mukasey's torture stance make any sense whatsoever. Unfortunately for all of us, we're stuck in the only known universe in which this complete idiot could ever have become President of, well, anything.
On a side note, the President's refusal to address the true issue at hand here reminds me of something amusing. Follow the link and see if you agree:
If you enjoyed that clip, check out this link; it contains the same clip preceeded by four similar clips.
