Tuesday, March 3, 2009

How much more don’t we know?

Unbelievable!

Yesterday, the New York Times reported that
The secret legal opinions issued by Bush administration lawyers after the Sept. 11 attacks included assertions that the president could use the nation’s military within the United States to combat terrorism suspects and to conduct raids without obtaining search warrants.

That opinion was among nine that were disclosed publicly for the first time Monday by the Justice Department….

The opinions reflected a broad interpretation of presidential authority, asserting as well that the president could unilaterally abrogate foreign treaties, ignore any guidance from Congress in dealing with detainees suspected of terrorism, and conduct a program of domestic eavesdropping without warrants.

The opinion authorizing the military to operate domestically was dated Oct. 23, 2001, and written by John C. Yoo, at the time a deputy assistant attorney general in the Office of Legal Counsel, and Robert J. Delahunty, a special counsel in the office…. (Memos Reveal Scope of Power Bush Sought in Fighting Terror) [My emphases.]

To see John Yoo’s 37-page opinion, go here (a large pdf file).

These days, Yoo teaches at Chapman University School of Law in the city of Orange (he’s on a semester-long leave from Cal). Today, the OC Reg offers an interview of the fellow. Some excerpts:

Q. Were you surprised with the student reaction at Berkeley to you being there?
A. Berkeley is sort of a magnet for hippies, protesters and left-wing activists. So I'm not surprised that being one of the few recognizable conservatives on campus that I would generate a lot of heat and friction….

Q. Have you done anything interesting since moving to Southern California?
A. I'm getting in shape, which everyone here seems to be in. I went and joined this L.A. Sports Club down in Irvine, and Kobe Bryant works out there….
...
Q. What needs to be understood with governmental decisions?
A. There are tradeoffs inherent in every question. Someone can say, "I think it's more important that other countries have a more favorable opinion of us than any intelligence we gain from interrogation." That's a benefit and a cost. That's the cost … we will get less information about the enemy.

John Yoo is Chapman’s Fletcher Jones Distinguished Vising Professor of Law. According to the university,

The Fletcher Jones Distinguished Visiting Professor of Law is selected annually from nominees and candidates who possess exceptionally outstanding credentials in legal education, and whose personal and professional lives reflect the highest ethical standards. [My emphasis.]

Today: Keith Olbermann interviews Constitutional scholar Jonathan Turley re the memos:

Roy's obituary in LA Times and Register: "we were lucky to have you while we did"

  This ran in the Sunday December 24, 2023 edition of the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register : July 14, 1955 - November 20, 2...