Thursday, December 15, 2005

Torturing the Iraqi election

My goodness, what an unremarkable non-coïncidence: Senator John McCain reached an agreement with the Bush administration to accept his proposed language against "cruel, inhuman, or degrading" treatment of prisoners in the physical control of the United States — on the very same day that Iraqis went to the polls to choose their national assembly.

It's been painfully obvious for some time that the Bush administration would cave in to the pressure exerted by McCain and others; the only question was one of timing. By announcing the deal today, the Bush administration can put the best possible perfume on their malodorous policies.

Torture does not work. Waffling about the issue of torture does more to harm American security than just about anything the President can do.