by Justin A. Martell
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) has proposed establishing a commission to investigate the actions of the Bush Administration.
The Bush Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as it is tentatively called, will look into several allegations made against the Bush Administration which include, but will not be limited to, torture and illegal wiretapping.
"There are some who oppose any effort to investigate the misdeeds of the past," said Sen. Leahy while speaking at Georgetown University on Feb. 8. Leahy went on to cite a recent example in which during the nomination hearing of current Attorney General Eric Holder, several Republican Senators "tried to extract a devils bargain with him...a commitment that he would not prosecute anything that happened on President Bush's watch. That is a pledge no prosecutor should give and Eric Holder did not give it. And because he did not it counts for some of the votes against him. That is not an example we should give for a country that believes in the rule of law and believes no one is above the law."
The purpose of the Commission would not be to serve indictments, but rather to get a clear understanding of the facts. The idea is to "not just wipe the slate clean, but learn the truth," Leahy said.
Even some Democrats have opposed looking into the actions of the Bush Administration claiming that the nation must look forward and not backward. Leahy responded directly to those critics, saying, "sometimes the best way to move forward is to find out the truth, find out what happened, and we do that to make sure it never happens again."
On Tuesday, Leahy met and discussed his plans with White House Chief Counsel Craig Greg. Greg did not give Leahy an answer as to whether the White House will back his proposal but said that they will "talk further."
Leahy's office has launched a website that features an online petition for those who support his call for the creation of such a commission.
Sources:
http://www.bushtruthcommission.com/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/10/exclusive-leahy-talks-to_n_165774.html
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