War Criminal Gonzales Trips Over His... Tongue (Leahy Grills Constitution Gonzo)
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War Criminal Gonzales Trips Over His... Tongue (Leahy Grills
Constitution Gonzo)
Date:
Friday, January 19, 2007 4:22:56 PM
[View Source]
Gonzales gave George the right to be completely unaccountable
to US or international law, which is not within his job description:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4999148/site/newsweek/
That's why he needs to be committed. He is not of sound mind.
===========================================================
LEAHY: Let me ask you this: Why aren't you at liberty?
I don't understand that. It's not a matter of executive privilege.
GONZALES: No, sir, again, and I'm not ...
LEAHY: It's only the president that can ...
GONZALES: No, I'm not suggesting that I will not be able to answer
your questions. I'm just suggesting I can't do it today.
LEAHY: Why?
GONZALES: I just - sir, I'm not - there is not a position - I
can't
represent the position of the executive branch on this particular
issue.
=========================================================
http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/172671
Transcript of Gonzales-Leahy exchange on Arar TheStar.com - Unassigned
-
Transcript of Gonzales-Leahy exchange on Arar
January 18, 2007
This is an edited transcript of the exchange yesterday between U.S.
Attorney-General Alberto Gonzales and Senate judiciary committee
chairman
Patrick Leahy.
LEAHY: You know, I live about an hour's drive from Canada and go up
there often.
And in Vermont, we tend to get a lot of Canadian news, just radio and
so on.
But something that made the news here in the United States was the
question of
Maher Arar. -- M-A-H-E-R A-R-A-R, in case I mispronounce it.
He's a Canadian citizen. He was returning home from a vacation. Plane
stops at
JFK in New York and continues on to Canada.
He was detained by federal agents at JFK airport, 2002, on suspicion of
ties to
terrorism.
He was deported to Syria; was not sent on the couple of hundred miles
to Canada
and turned over to the Canadian authorities, but he was sent thousands
of miles
away to Syria. He was held for 10 months.
He was held in abhorrent conditions there and those sending him back
must have
known he was going to be tortured.
The Canadian government has apologized for its part in this debacle. In
fact,
the head of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police actually resigned over
it. The
country is prepared to compensate him for it.
This country has not said anything at all that we made any mistake or
had any
apology.
Press accounts indicate the Justice Department approved his deportation
to
Syria.
And I understand he remained on the United States terrorist watch list
so he
couldn't come 50 miles or 75 miles, whatever, south into the United
States
without fear of being picked up again, sent back to Syria.
Why is he on a government watch list if he's been found completely
innocent by
this Canadian commission, which actually had the information from us?
GONZALES: Senator, I've got some very definite views about this
particular case,
as you know...
LEAHY: Well, go ahead.
GONZALES: ... beyond litigation. What I want to do is, hopefully, in
the next
few days - I'm happy to sit down with you and Senator (Arlen) Specter
and give you more information.
In fact, we may be able to publicly say more about this shortly. I'm
just not at
liberty, at this time, to...
LEAHY: Let me ask you this: Why aren't you at liberty?
I don't understand that. It's not a matter of executive privilege.
GONZALES: No, sir, again, and I'm not ...
LEAHY: It's only the president that can ...
GONZALES: No, I'm not suggesting that I will not be able to answer your
questions. I'm just suggesting I can't do it today.
LEAHY: Why?
GONZALES: I just - sir, I'm not - there is not a position - I
can't represent
the position of the executive branch on this particular issue.
But I think, in a relatively short period of time, there's more
information that
I should be able to share with you, and hopefully, that we can share
publicly.
LEAHY: But why was he sent to Syria instead of Canada?
GONZALES: Well, again, Senator, I'd be happy to answer these questions
I think
we can say a lot more about it, if you just simply give me some
additional time.
LEAHY: Can you tell me why (then attorney-general John Ashcroft) took
steps to
ensure that he wouldn't be tortured?
Of course, he was.
GONZALES: I believe that piece of information is public. There were
steps. I
think General Ashcroft confirmed this publicly, is that there were
assurances
sought that he would not be tortured from Syria.
LEAHY: Attorney-General ...
(laughter)
.... I'm sorry. I don't mean to treat this lightly. We knew damn well,
if he went
to Canada, he wouldn't be tortured. He'd be held. He'd be investigated.
We also knew damn well, if he went to Syria, he'd be tortured.
And it's beneath the dignity of this country, a country that has always
been a
beacon of human rights, to send somebody to another country to be
tortured.
You know, and I know, that has happened a number of times, in the past
five
years, by this country. It is a black mark on us. It has brought about
the
condemnation of some of our closest and best allies.
And it is easy for us to sit here comfortably in this room knowing that
we're not going to
be sent off to another country to be tortured, to treat it as though,
well,
Attorney-General Ashcroft says we've got assurances.
Assurances from a country that we also say, now, we can't talk to them
because
we can't take their word for anything?
GONZALES: Well, Senator, I ...
LEAHY: I'm somewhat upset.
GONZALES: Yes, sir, I can tell. But before you get more upset, perhaps
you
should wait to receive the briefing ...
LEAHY: How long?
GONZALES: I'm hoping that we can get you the information next week.
LEAHY: Well, Attorney-General, I'll tell you what I'll do: I'll meet
you halfway
on this.
I'll wait next week for that briefing. If we don't get it, I guarantee
you there
will be another hearing on this issue.
Canadians have been our closest allies - longest unguarded frontier
in the
world. They're justifiably upset. They're wondering what's happened to
us.
They're wondering what's happened to us.
Now you know and I know, we're a country with a great, great tradition
of protecting
people's individual liberties and rights. You take an oath of office to
do that;
I take an oath of office to do that. I believe, in my basic core
nature, in
that. My grandparents, when they immigrated to this country, believed
that.
Let us not, let us not create more terrorism around the world by
telling the
world that we cannot keep up to our basic standards and beliefs.
So I'll wait a week, I'll wait a week, but I won't wait more than a
week for
that briefing.
GONZALES: I look forward to being able to provide the briefing that you
are
requesting.
LEAHY: Thank you.
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