BCT Editorial – 5/23/07

This page was last updated on May 27, 2007.

Civil liberties; Editorial; Beaver County Times; May 23, 2007.

For the most part, this is a “me too” version of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editorial “Sick visit.”

Below is a detailed critique of the subject editorial.

“The Bush administration’s disdain for civil liberties has long troubled us.”

[RWC] This is what I call a drive-by accusation. Note the lack of examples and supporting evidence.

“However, we didn’t realize how bad the situation was until testimony last week by former deputy attorney general James Comey revealed former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft was the administration’s civil libertarian.

“Comey told senators that when Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was White House counsel, he and White House chief of staff Andy Card visited Ashcroft while he was in the hospital. They tried to pressure him into certifying the legality of Bush’s controversial eavesdropping program while Ashcroft was in intensive care.

“Ashcroft refused to heed their request. The program was eventually certified after it was modified.

“The Washington Post reported Ashcroft took similar civil-liberties stands on other issues, including holding detainees at Guantanamo Bay indefinitely without some form of due process.

“The situation says more about the Bush administration’s attitude toward civil liberties than it does Ashcroft’s commitment to them.”

[RWC] Since most of this is a rehash of the aforementioned PG editorial, please see my critique of that editorial for most of my comments.