Originally posted by Odium1. The U.S. Congress approved Senator John McCain’s amendment last year to ban torture by all U.S.
government agencies. This move recognized that a ban on torture is not only a moral necessity but also essential to ensure the same protections for
U.S. soldiers. Recent legislative action, however, allows harsh interrogation techniques to be used by non-military interrogators. Will you support
future legislation that bans all U.S.-sponsored torture, with no exceptions and directs all U.S. agents to abide by the Geneva Conventions?
Completely. 100%. In fact, I'll go as far as to support having non-military interrogators adhering to the same standards.
2. The federal War Crimes Act of 1996 defines a war crime as any “grave breach” of the Geneva Conventions’ Common Article 3. This
standard ensures that those who commit such abuses, including against our own troops, do not go unpunished. Do you believe the United States should
maintain an unwavering commitment to Common Article 3?
How can we insist that our soldiers be humanely treated if we don't treat our own prisoners humanely? I support that, 100%.
3. The president acknowledged the existence of a CIA program that indefinitely detains “enemy combatants” in secret sites outside the rule
of law and without access to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Individuals detained in such locations are afforded no safeguards of
due process and may be subject to unchecked abuses. Will you call upon the United States to cease all secret detentions and provide the ICRC access to
all U.S. prisoners, as required by our international treaty obligations?
I will. I think the secret program is a rather disgusting artifact of the Cold War.
4. Under the practice of “extraordinary rendition,” the United States transports individuals from one country to another without judicial
oversight to face criminal charges in the receiving country. Diplomatic assurances from the receiving government are designed to protect the human
rights of the detainee, but many officials have confirmed that the U.S. has no capacity to ensure humane treatment under these circumstances. Do you
support a prohibition on transfers of individuals in U.S. custody to other countries where they are likely to be tortured regardless of assurances
otherwise?
Yes. Again, if we do not support this kind of treatment for our troops, then we should not do it ourselves.
5. Recent legislation will permit—for the first time in the history of the United States— individuals to be convicted based on evidence
obtained through abuse or torture (admitted through hearsay evidence). Will you oppose this practice, even for trials involving terrorism
suspects?
Actually, it's not the first time in US history -- see the Salem Witch trials for another disgusting example.
No, I don't support it. People who have been tortured will say ANYthing to get the torture to stop. This has been proved countless times. It is
not justice to convict someone based on evidence gained through torture.
6. By making War Crimes Act changes that are retroactive to Sept. 11, 2001, Congress has immunized all top government officials and CIA agents
against prosecution for interrogation policies that resulted in the abuses at Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo Bay, and in secret government torture cells
around the globe. Should top government officials, private contractors, and CIA officials be given blanket immunity for their past conduct?
I don't think the changes should be retroactive. I would work to have that removed. I think they need to be held accountable.
7. More than two years after the Abu Ghraib photos were published — and nearly four years after the first abuse-related deaths in U.S.
custody as part of the “war on terror” — we are still not in a position to say that we know how this situation came about so that we can ensure
that such abuses never happen again. Do you support the establishment of an independent commission to investigate U.S. detention and interrogation
policies and practices since Sept. 11, 2001, and to hold those who authorized and carried out abuses accountable?
Actually, I think we do know what the cause was -- failure within the military infrastructure. The leaders set the policies and are responsible for
them. Yes, an investigation should be conducted -- but modifications to basic training need to be done.
And we need to quit using contractors.
8. Under recent legislation, the president will be permitted to authorize acts that are prohibited by Common Article 3 of the Geneva
Conventions and the Army Field Manual on Intelligence Interrogations, without the possibility of court review of this authority. This strips the
courts of their historical and constitutional role as a check on the executive branch. Do you oppose this broad expansion of executive powers,
allowing the president to choose to follow or not follow international treaties, and that will side-step the authority of our courts system?
I'm against that. The office of the presidency isn't supposed to be a dictatorship.