Bush administration and torture

The following relate to the Bush administration and torture.

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Abu Ghraib

The origins of the prisoner abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib lay in discussions amongst Bush administration officials about their interpretations of what standards of treatment of prisoners were permissable in Iraq.[1]

Resources

Related SourceWatch articles

• Abu Ghraib
• Alberto Gonzales
• Bush Administration War on Terror Memos
• Bush administration scandals (related to U.S. Department of Justice)

• Bush administration U.S. attorney firings controversy
• Bush administration warrantless wiretapping
• George W. Bush's domestic spying

• Congressional Action: Ban on Torture
• Dispatches: Kidnap and Torture American Style
• extraordinary rendition
• global detention system / Stopping the torture
• Jack Goldsmith
• Legal Arguments for Avoiding the Jurisdiction of the Geneva Conventions
• Military Commissions Act of 2006
• Operation Iraqi Freedom
• Post-war Iraq
• President's Military Order of November 13, 2001, Detention, Treatment, and Trial of Certain Non-Citizens in the War Against Terrorism
• The case for impeachment of President George W. Bush
• The Constitution in Crisis; The Downing Street Minutes and Deception, Manipulation, Torture, Retribution, and Coverups in the Iraq War, and Illegal Domestic Surveillance
• John Yoo

External articles

Series

• Jack M. Balkin, Mark Graber, Stephen Griffin, Scott Horton and Marty Lederman, "The Anti-Torture Memos: Balkinization Posts on Torture, Interrogation, Detention, War Powers, Executive Authority, and OLC," Balkinization Blogspot. Includes dozens of archived articles dating from November 29, 2001 to present. Also can be accessed by topic.
• "Bush Condoned Torturing Prisoners," ImpeachBush.tv.
• Archived articles at truthout.

2004

• William Saletan, "Rape Rooms: A Chronology. What Bush said as the Iraq prison scandal unfolded," Slate, May 5, 2004.
• Rob Kall, "Bush Torture Chamber Court-Martials Are Distractions From What They Want You to Ignore," OpEdNews, May 10, 2004.
• "Bush Administration Lawyers Greenlight Torture. Memo Suggests Intent to Commit War Crimes," Human Rights Watch, June 7, 2004.
• Mike Allen and Dana Priest, "Memo on Torture Draws Focus to Bush. Aide Says President Set Guidelines for Interrogations, Not Specific Techniques," Washington Post, June 9, 2004.
• Frank Wallis, "Bush, Torture and American Values in Iraq," Counterbias, June 18, 2004.
• Suzanne Goldenberg, "Bush memos show stance on torture," The Guardian (UK), June 24, 2004.
• Bernard Weiner, "Bush's Torture Deceit: What 'Is' Is," The Crisis Papers, June 29, 2004.
• Kate Randall, "International Red Cross charges systematic abuse. Bush's 'Torture Inc.' at Guantanamo," WSWS, December 2, 2004.
• "Bush Approved Torture Techniques. FBI E-Mail Refers to Presidential Order Authorizing Inhumane Interrogation Techniques. Newly Obtained FBI Records Call Defense Department’s Methods 'Torture,' Express Concerns Over 'Cover-Up' That May Leave FBI 'Holding the Bag' for Abuses," ACLU (InformationClearinghouse.info), December 20, 2004.
• "U.S.: Did President Bush Order Torture? White House Must Explain 'Executive Order' Cited in FBI E-Mail," Human Rights Watch, December 21, 2004.

2005

• David Johnston and Neil A. Lewis, "Bush's Counsel Sought Ruling About Torture," New York Times, January 5, 2005.
• Chris Suellentrop, "Undiplomatic Immunity. Did Al Gonzales say the president can authorize torture?" Slate, January 6, 2005.
• Marty Lederman, "Understanding the Torture Memos": Part I; Part II; Part III; and Coda, Balkinization Blogspot, January 7, 2005.
• Dave Lindorff, "Chertoff buried early evidence of Bush's torture campaign in Afghanistan," The Nation (InformationClearinghouse.info), January 31, 2005.
• "Michael Chertoff: Another Accomplice in Bush's Torture Chamber," The Moscow Times (posted by Chris Floyd, Empire Burlesque Blogspot, September 11, 2005), February 3, 2005.
• Tom Allard, Douglas Jehl and David Johnston, "Bush set ball rolling for overseas torture," Sydney Morning Herald (Australia), March 7, 2005.
• Marty Lederman, "Silver Linings (or, the Strange But True Fate of the Second (or was it the Third?) OLC Torture Memo)," Balkinization Blogspot, September 21, 2005.
• Patrick Martin, "Bush White House declares torture vital to US security policy," WSWS, October 7, 2005.
• Mary Shaw, Editorial: "Bush's Torture Scapegoat," One Thousand Reasons, October 8, 2005.
• Editorial: "A Future Investigation," Washington Post, October 16, 2005.
• Justine Davidson, "A Small Victory. Prosecuting Bush in Canada for Torture," CounterPunch, October 20, 2005.
• Niko Kyriakou, "Bush: Treaty Outlawing Torture Doesn't Apply Beyond US Soil," Antiwar.com, October 31, 2005.
• "Bush: ‘We do not torture’ terror suspects. Response to question comes as exception is sought for CIA," Associated Press (MSNBC), November 7, 2005.
• "US does not torture, Bush insists," BBC News, November 7, 2005.
• "History of an Interrogation Technique: Water Boarding. New Debate Sparked on What Constitutes Torture," ABC News, November 29, 2005.
• Melanie, "Bush Flip-Flops on Torture Bigtime, But Fox Has His Back," News Hounds, December 15, 2005.
• John W. Dean, "Shocking The Conscience Of America: Bush And Cheney Call For The Right To Torture And Are Decisively and Correctly Rebuffed by the House," FindLaw's Writ, December 16, 2005.
• Ray McGovern, "Bush's Underwhelming Gesture on Torture," Antiwar.com, December 19, 2005.

2006

• Charlie Savage, "Bush could bypass new torture ban. Waiver right is reserved," Boston Globe, January 4, 2006.
• Paras D. Bhayani, "After Newsweek Reports That Goldsmith Opposed Bush Torture Policy, HLS Profs' Critics Stay Mum," The Harvard Crimson, February 17, 2006.
• Jane Mayer, "The Memo. How an internal effort to ban the abuse and torture of detainees was thwarted," The New Yorker, February 27, 2006.
• Tracy Bowden, Transcript: "Bush denies torture claims at CIA-run facilities," ABC News (Australia), July 9, 2006.
• Dave Johnson, "Bush Wants 'Protections' From Torture Laws," Seeing the Forest, July 28, 2006.
• Nico Pitney, "LETTER: Powell Says Bush Plan To Authorize Torture 'Would Put Troops At Risk'," Think Progress, September 14, 2006.
• Editorial: "A Defining Moment for America. The president goes to Capitol Hill to lobby for torture," Washington Post, September 15, 2006.
• Sidney Blumenthal, "How Bush Rules: Torture and The Quest For Unfettered Power," Think Progress, September 17, 2006.
• Eugene Robinson, "Torture is Torture. Bush's 'Program' Disgraces All Americans," Washington Post, September 19, 2006.
• Arianna Huffington, "Powell Stands Up to Bush on Torture," The Huffington Post (AlterNet), September 19, 2006.
• Sidney Blumenthal, Opinion: "Where torture got him. Bush's effort to gut the Geneva Conventions has antagonized the military, split Republicans, and undercut his war on terror," Salon, September 21, 2006.
• Robert J. Caldwell, "Bush, McCain and 'torture'," San Diego Union-Tribune, September 24, 2006.
• Chris Floyd, "The Lineage of Bush-Cheney Torture," Empire Burlesque Blogspot, October 2, 2006.
• Carla Seaquist, "Bush's torture policy hurts our soldiers," Christian Science Monitor, October 4, 2006.
• Jennifer Van Bergen, "Bush’s Brave New World of Torture," TomPaine.com (AlterNet), November 1, 2006.
• Dan Eggen, "CIA Acknowledges 2 Interrogation Memos. Papers Called Too Sensitive for Release," Washington Post, November 14, 2006.
• David Johnston, "Document shows Bush guided CIA on detention," New York Times/International Herald Tribune, November 14, 2006.
• Bob Geiger, "Dodd Moves Quickly to Neuter Bush's Torture Bill," BobGeiger Blogspot, November 17, 2006.
• Bob Geiger, "Kill Bill - Neutering Bush's Torture Law," BobGeiger Blogspot, November 20, 2006.

2007

• Brent Mickum, "Guantánamo's lost souls," commment is free .../The Guardian (UK), January 8, 2007.
• Chris Floyd, "Blood Meridian: Bush's High Crimes of Torture and War," LewRockwell.com, January 11, 2007.
• James Bovard, "The Bush Torture Memos," Future of Freedom Foundation, February 5, 2007; LewRockwell.com, February 6, 2007.
• David Edwards and Andrew Bielak, "Legal expert: President Bush may have ordered torture of terror suspects," The Raw Story, March 10, 2007.
• James Bovard, "Gonzales’s Fall, Bush’s Impeachment?" LewRockwell.com (JimBovard.com), March 20, 2007.
• Robert Parry, "Bush, Iran & Selective Outrage," Consortiumnews.com, April 2, 2007.
• Len Hart, "Above the Law: How Bush Became the Torture President," The Existential Cowboy Blogspot, April 11, 2007.
• Scott Horton, "Torture, Secrecy, and the Bush Administration," Harper's Magazine, April 14, 2007.
• Sidney Blumenthal, "From Norman Rockwell to Abu Ghraib. To understand how Bush justifies a torture policy that is the bane of our nation, consider the sentimental cowboy art that decks his Oval Office walls," Salon, April 26, 2007.
• Michael Roston, "Report: Torture architect feels guilt for Abu Ghraib," The Raw Story, May 10, 2007.
• "Retired Generals Blast Torture Supporters," Think Progress, May 17, 2007.

2008

• Jennifer Van Bergen, "John Yoo: The President's Executioner", Global Research, April 22, 2008.

External resources

• Second amended complaint for Al-Rawi v Titan et al case# 04cv1143 (.pdf).
• "A Guide to the Memos on Torture" published by The New York Times, June 26, 2004; accessed May 2007. (This page has a timeline of the internal debates and links to pdf of internal memos that have been obtained).