It was just a little torture!

The position of the highest law enforcement office in our (formally) great country is up for grabs, and the nominee (Alberto Gonzales) is a known loyalist of a largely untrusted President (49% approval rating, 56% disapproving of the war in Iraq), and he's documented to be at least permissive of torture if not a promoter of it (we'll never know because the White House isn't releasing the requested documents).

So, where are the Democrats at? I would expect them to be outraged and to lobby against Mr. Gonzales' approval. Instead, it seems, they asked their questions and Mr. Gonzales skillfully dodged them: From the Washington Post:

Hours go by and little gets clarified. Gonzales did not author or even conceive of the infamous Aug. 1, 2002, "torture memo." It was drafted by Department of Justice lawyer John Yoo and signed by then-Assistant Attorney General Jay Bybee, and neither of them are in the room. When seeking their advice, did Gonzales press them to be "forward-leaning," as some news reports have suggested?

"I don't recall ever using the term 'lean forward,' " he tells Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), the first of a string of deflections.

Kennedy loses his focus and moves on to ask about civil rights.

So much for our politicians. Our forefathers would say that this is a time when the people must take matters into their own hands. We must demonstrate our disapproval of Alberto Gonzales' nomination for Attorney General. But alas! We are a lazy bunch. Or perhaps we've just surrendered to the corruption we see in Washington. Maybe we're too busy with our (average) 46 hour work week, and we want to spend the rest of our time with our families and friends -there's simply no time to follow politics? Whatever the reason, only 20 people showed up to protest the inevitable approval of Mr. Gonzales.

From Alberto's testmony we did, however get some insight into this current administrations views about the Geneva Conventions. Here is an exerpt from an article in the Houston Chronicle:

Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass says: "The legal positions that you have supported have been used by the administration, the military and the CIA to justify torture and Geneva Convention violations by military and civilian personnel."

Gonzales replies: "The president has made clear that he condemns this conduct and that these activities are inconsistent with his policies," (referring to mistreatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo). "He has also made clear that America stands against and will not tolerate torture under any circumstances. I share his resolve that torture and abuse will not be tolerated by this administration."

Then, the Houstan Chronicle says, he revealed that the Bush administration was considering proposing some changes to the Geneva Conventions, rules covering detainees dating to 1949.

When the administration came up with the Patriot Act wants to now change the Geneva Conventions I quiver...

Also in the Houstan Chronicle, more dodging

At issue were two memos: One written by Gonzales found that Taliban and al-Qaida fighters captured in Afghanistan did not have legal protections under the Geneva Conventions. Another written by Justice Department lawyers at Gonzales' request said the president could legally order some forms of harsh treatment of prisoners.

He dodged efforts to make him repudiate findings that a president could ignore some anti-torture statutes if that president found them unconstitutional, saying such questions were hypothetical.

....

Gonzales also failed to directly answer when asked if he agreed with military lawyers who have held that a U.S. policy that refuses to grant all detainees Geneva Conventions rights puts American troops who might be captured at risk.

Gonzales stuck to his position that while torture could not be used, terrorists captured in battle did not deserve all the Geneva Conventions rights given to traditional prisoners.

Okay. Eveyone in Washington has learned to dodge questions. Why doesn't someone hold these clowns accountable for an answer? I mean, I'd expect the person asking the question to insist on an answer. Unless, of course, they really don't care. Grrr... There's really not even much recourse for the voters, I mean we so often make a choice between the lesser of two evils. This is the result. We need REAL people to run for office. People who care about how our country is perceived by the world. People who can step back and say "What are the consequences of applying the Geneva Conventions selectively?" and "What are the consequences of allowing our government to bypass the justice system and hold hundreds of people (without any charges brought against them) indefinitely without regard to the law or the Constitution?

And what was Alberto Gonzales doing before Bush brought him to Washington? Again, from the Houstan Chronicle:

Senators also delved into Gonzales' duties as then-Gov. Bush's chief lawyer in Texas. He faced questions about the Texas death penalty policies of Bush, including his habit of receiving a summary of clemency issues on the day of executions. In one such memo, noted Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., Gonzales had not mentioned that the lawyer of a condemned man had fallen asleep during the trial.

Gonzales said his friendship with Bush would not affect his ability to be an independent attorney general.

Arg! I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone here. Is this really my country? In the United States a person can be put to death when his lawyer FELL ASLEEP AT HIS TRIAL!?! Why didn't the judge stop the trail and issue a new lawyer? How could Gonzales know about this and allow the man to be put to death? Wow. Just... wow.

The thing that really made my jaw drop, however was this from the Washington Post:

"Occasionally his Democratic questioners engage in long, indignant tirades, even though Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.) announces early on that -- despite any appearance of hostility -- none of them actually plans to vote against Gonzales and they all know he will be confirmed."

It confirms what those of us who pay attention already know. It's all a big show. He's a shoe-in anyway. Torture or no torture, memo or no memo. If Canada wasn't so cold I'd have moved already.