President Barak Obama changed his tune Wednesday, softening his "no prosecution, no way" stance on investigation and prosecution of members of the administration of former President George W. Bush who sanctioned torture of prisoners.
Obama caved to pressure from members of his own party who want blood — lots of blood — from the rotting corpse of the so-called Bush legacy.
Which begs the question: How did they change Obama’s mind?
They probably waterboarded him. Former Vice President Dick Cheney says it works wonders. So do the handful of former Bush Administration clones who still cling to the discredited notion that their President actually accomplished something during his eight years in the White House.
Or maybe Democrats subjected Obama to hours of Rush Limbaugh radio show tapes. It would only take about 15 minutes of listening to Limbaugh’s blather and I’d confess to killing former President John F. Kennedy.
Or maybe they just showed him a picture of Limbaugh in swim trunks: Whale on the beach! God knows the mouth that roared can’t match Obama in the buff.
Whatever method of "aggressive interrogation" the Democrats used on Obama, it apparently worked. If Obama follows through and gives the green light to a full-blown pursuit of the Bush crime family the stampede will make Sherman’s march to the sea look like an Easter Parade.
Blood lust runs high along the banks of the Potomac. Some Democrats won’t be satisfied until they see Bush, Cheney, et. al pounding rocks at Levenworth and Republicans want Obama tagged as Socialist of the Century.
So much for bi-partisanship but while the concept of America’s two dominant political parties working together made for a good campaign stump speech it never had a chance in the bitter, partisan world of big-time Washington politics.
The divide between Republicans and Democrats has never been wider. As the fog of bi-partisanship faded, both parties retreated to their extremes: Republicans to the right while Democrats shouted "go left young man" to their new President.
For the most part, Obama seems willing to find solace in his party’s extreme left wing. His programs are mostly liberalism at its core: Big government, big spending and a system that takes care of Americans from the cradle to the grave.
Moderates from both parties hoped Obama would govern from the middle as Bill Clinton did after his brief flirtation with the extreme left during his first two years in office. As Obama heads toward the media-manufactured "first 100 days" milestone, his performance will be measured more for its liberal performance than by moderate expectations.
But Clinton shifted back towards the middle after voters in the 1994 mid-term elections delivered a stinging indictment of his liberalism. If voters do the same next year, Obama could recognize that a shift to the center is a way to assure a second term.
This, of course, is all specutation. Polls show Americans support most of Obama’s actions and having the electorate on your side gives a President a lot of room.
Yet Obama’s toughest critics may be the liberal base of his own party, a base that demands more and more capitulation from the President.
He appears to have caved on the question of prosecution of Bush and his band of renegades.
Which brings us back to the original question: Who waterboarded the President of the United States?
31 thoughts on “OK: Who waterboarded Obama?”
We knew, we would have to kill the Arcade, watch out pinball.
Here we have an ABC news report of our good friends in Saudi Arabia torturing a grain dealer. The main torturer happens to be one of the 22 royal sheikhs.
Everyone needs to watch this video. This is what torture is folks, and it ain’t pretty.
If ANY of you EVER thought Obama was anything but a good ol boy who would be beholden to the puppet masters, you were deceived.
Obama favors warrantless wiretapping. He is expanding war in Afghanistan. He has managed to outspend Bush in a matter of weeks.
Banks wanting to return TARP funds are having difficulty. Seems our government doesn’t want the funds returned. Does this mean our government wants to retain control over the banks?
And isn’t anyone just a tad uncomfortable with a commander in chief who can demand the resignation of a CEO (GM)?
The torture memos are a distraction to a disappointing and troublesome presidency.
OK Kerry. So the CIA is trafficing in drugs. So why in the fuck aren’t you doing something about it?
Can one of you geniuses tell me how many people it takes to prosecute one criminal? It sure as hell isn’t all of Washington. What was the Kerry Commisions outcome on CIA drug running? Yes they are, but we aren’t going to do anything about it. Washington does not disclose its findings; it covers them up. Washington is not part of the USA.
Theater? Everything that goes on in Washington is theater. Things are being done to distract from this and things are being done to distract from that, but the problems are real and they all need to be addressed. ALL OF THEM. We do not elect people to distract from problems. We elect people to solve them. Unfortunately, the people we elect don’t give a rats ass about what we think, they are just in it for them selves. What can you do but get pissed and let the assholes in Washington know that we aren’t going to take it anymore.
The overriding theme seems to be that people are referring to what they see on TV. Cheney on this channel and Cheney on that channel…
Turn off the fuckin’ TV already!
It doesn’t get any simpler that that. Turn off the god-damned TV already and think for your god-damned selves.
Unbelievable.
Smile as the puppets dance.
The laughter is deafening.
Sorry about the FactCheck article. A glitch in our publishing system allowed the teaser to appear on the home page before the article was edited and cleared for publication. That’s why no one could access the story.
It has been posted now. Do me a favor and read my side of what happened before coming to the conclusions that FactCheck and Brooks Jackson is not, in fact, engaged in a vendetta against this web site.
Never said we couldn’t.
I’m saying that the expenditure of political capital required to take this on needs to be used on the pressing issues such as energy, the economy, foreign policy, health care. Then, if he is clearly not going to get a second term he can launch it at the end of the term or if he is clearly getting a second term that would be the ideal time.
deleted by poster
Griff you are likely right concerning the outcome.
This past tense, seemingly staged outrage, is nothing but a distraction; ie., “high Congressional theater” while they continue to hand SOT Geithner and the Goldman Sachs gang et al. endless sums of U.S. tax dollars.
Thanks for “King Crimson”… : )
Carl Nemo **==
OK, why do I get this:
Access denied
You are not authorized to access this page.
on the Factcheck.org story?
John1172002
VENDETTA?
I tried to read more about your Fact Check complaint but https://capitolhillblue.com/node/17663 says I’m not allowed to read it.
FactCheck let me read their story. I didn’t see it as a “personal vendetta”.
https://www.factcheck.org/askfactcheck/have_84_members_of_congress_been_arrested.html
Yeah right. This is a waste of time and energy. Nothing will ever come of this. Wait and see.
The Obama administration should just get it over with and arrest them. There is plenty of evidence. Arrest them, so we can move on.
But that won’t happen. Ever.
Why wasn’t anything done sooner? I’ll tell you why. Because the Democrats allowed this to continue so they could use it now. They weren’t opposed to it then, and they’re sure as hell not opposed to it now.
Where were they all these years? They were turning a blind eye for political reasons. And now they’ve opened their eyes for purely political reasons. I don’t buy any of it.
Hell, they wouldn’t impeach, and now we foolishly expect them to prosecute?
This is a stupid game.
On soft grey mornings widows cry,
The wise men share a joke;
I run to grasp divining signs
To satisfy the hoax.
The yellow jester does not play
But gently pulls the strings
And smiles as the puppets dance
In the court of the crimson king.
-King Crimson
One of the Bush Administration’s main successes was their ability to assault us on so many fronts at one time. This meant everyone was divided into their little groups instead of focusing on one large encompassing issue. Aided by the media to hype the latest offense, and forget the last one as old news, they kept everyone divided for 8 years.
Prosecution for torture is an issue everyone can and should rally around.
Strato you are right as rain. We cannot and should not move on anything until the crimes of the bushco cabal are prosecuted.
As you so astutely pointed out, we can do more than one thing at once and it is imperative that single focus does not continue to be the norm in our government.
It’s time these desk jockeys learn to multitask. My dear wife would be happy to give them lessons, she’s a Pro.
There is a very lame attempt going on to use the problems of the present to divert attention away from the crimes of the past. Don’t buy it.
This is extremely important yet very frustrating. Many want of us want to lobby Obama, end the blockade of Cuba sooner, pressureing Isreal to allow more aid to Pallistine, only tough love for the banking industry etc.
It’s clear that those who claim Obama is no good or mostly hype are doing nothing to modify his policies a little. It’s frustrating to figure out how to successfully lobby Obama, yet those in the know seem to succeed somewhat.
Please help me find the answer how to do successfully lobby Obama. Obviously Hamas who at first cheared Obama’s victory, only to have Obama respond with the answer he wasn’t now prepared to negociate with Hamas, didn’t have the answer.
Please help me find the answer?
RichardKanePA
Who said we can only do one thing at a time?
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