DOJ kill list memo forces many Dems out of the closet as overtly unprincipled hacks

The Guardian ^ | 11 Feb 2013 | Glenn Greenwald

[Theoria]

Last week's controversy over Obama's assassination program forced into light many ignored truths that were long obvious

This past week has been a strangely clarifying political moment. It was caused by two related events: the leak of the Justice Department's "white paper" justifying Obama's claimed power to execute Americans without charges, followed by John Brennan's alarming confirmation hearing (as Charles Pierce wrote: "the man whom the administration has put up to head the CIA would not say whether or not the president of the United States has the power to order the extrajudicial killing of a United States citizen within the borders of the United States"). I describe last week's process as "strange" because, for some reason, those events caused large numbers of people for the first time to recognize, accept and begin to confront truths that have long been readily apparent.

Illustrating this odd phenomenon was a much-discussed New York Times article on Sunday by Peter Baker which explained that these events "underscored the degree to which Mr. Obama has embraced some of Mr. Bush's approach to counterterrorism, right down to a secret legal memo authorizing presidential action unfettered by outside forces." It began this way:

"If President Obama tuned in to the past week's bracing debate on Capitol Hill about terrorism, executive power, secrecy and due process, he might have recognized the arguments his critics were making: He once made some of them himself.

"Four years into his tenure, the onetime critic of President George W. Bush finds himself cast as a present-day Mr. Bush, justifying the muscular application of force in the defense of the nation while detractors complain that he has sacrificed the country's core values in the name of security."

Baker also noticed this:

[gusopol3]

There is an enormous difference between Obama and Bush. There is no question Bush employed tactics for the purpose of US national security. In whose service does Obama employ greatly expanded usage?

[edcoil]

Leftist, socialist and communists have killed their fellow man for generations. This is no surprise.

[sickoflibs]

RE :”Baker also noticed this: “Some liberals acknowledged in recent days that they were willing to accept policies they once would have deplored as long as they were in Mr. Obama’s hands, not Mr. Bush's.” As but one example, the article quoted Jennifer Granholm, the former Michigan governor and fervent Obama supporter, as admitting without any apparent shame that “if this was Bush, I think that we would all be more up in arms” because, she said “we trust the president”.

You all miss the point :
Obama cares for us. This is why it is OK.
Heck, if he waterboarded them it would be OK, because he would do it ‘for the right reasons’ even if we don't what they are because they are written in secret memo's.

Yes, if Bush did this we would call for impeachment, that would be different.

[Red Badger]

It’s only weird if it doesn’t work.............

[The Great RJ]

Even my liberal son-in-law called Obama’s kill list memo an act of tyranny! I pointed out that if George Bush had promulgated such a memo he would have been quickly impeached, but with the Obama double standard nothing will happen.

[I want the USA back]

The complete hypocricy of the democrats is disgusting.

[concerned about politics]

Even my liberal son-in-law called Obama’s kill list memo an act of tyranny!

I think a lot of leftists are starting to notice the same thing, and now they don't know what to do. They made fools out of themselves to get Oboma elected and re-elected, now they don't dare say anything, because they did this.
Now that Oboma can't run again, he's going to start showing his real colors more and more, and those who blindly supported him are going to become very frightened by what they see. Worse for them than us, because they did this! The blood will be on their hands.

[Scrambler Bob]

On a Sun AM talk show, some dem said - well Bush waterboarded three, and obama killed three with drone strikes. So this is nothing new.

Hmmmm, and how many innocents were killed by waterboarding???

My wife wants a bumper sticker: CHOOSE LIFE - CHOOSE WATERBOARDING.

Then someone said - now that we can reach farther (referring to drone strikes) than before. So we need to rethink the Constitution with respect to our new abilities of war fighting.

Wait!! We have always had Wet Work, at any remote location, any time.

But that had Plausible Deniability. Don’t have that with drones. That is why bo has to make his policy for killing - drone killing is directly traceable to him.

[DPMD]

Oh, they were out of the closet well before this, just by virtue of being democrats.

[Scotswife]

I have a good memory - I remember the folks on my FB list who repeatedly condemned W for being a war mongerer that used torture.

Not one word from these people.
Not. One. Word.

[spel_grammer_an_punct_polise]

If Big Brutha wants you he doesn’t need drones. He has plenty of Chicago thugs to carry out his plan to destroy all opposition.

[NativeSon]

Their duplicity while not surprising, still sickens me.

There is a church around my way that had all those "war is not the answer" signs out for years, right up until Zero won the election... not peep now.

[arthurus]

The reasons don’t really matter because the whole question is Lenin’s Question, “Who? Whom?” It is all about who rules and who is subjected, not about the nature of the power the ruler wields. Nearly identical totalitarians can fight bloody wars, not about the ideology and right and wrong, but about just who it is that will wield the power. The Bolsheviks fight a foreign country to subject it. The Leninists fight the Trotskyites to exterminate them.

[yadent]

I believe that is why many ‘progressives’ are torn over the ex-LAPD Dorner taking out his persieved enemies and the children of those persieved enemies, as the present US administration has done the same acts via drones on ‘suspected’ terrorists and their ‘suspect’ children-—American citizen children. Selective ‘due process’? The lawlessness at the highest levels of this country, from Wall Street to DC, is now filtering down to the masses. We are reaping the results of what we have elevated.

[GOPJ]

The press is the overindulgent mother who thinks her son - the school bully - 'does no wrong'. New York Times, Washington Post and LA Times - we're talkin' to YOU.

Yeah, the press thinks it's all Bush's fault. It's not possible their guy is the biggest thug the nation has ever elected. Nope, that can't be it. It's Bush's fault. Same with Obama bankrupting the country. Other President's 'borrowed' so it's not Obama's fault. Nothing's his fault. Why he's misunderstood...

[GOPJ]

The press is the overindulgent mother who thinks her son - the school bully - 'does no wrong'. New York Times, Washington Post and LA Times - we're talkin' to YOU.

Yeah, the press thinks it's all Bush's fault. It's not possible their guy is the biggest thug the nation has ever elected. Nope, that can't be it. It's Bush's fault. Same with Obama bankrupting the country. Other President's 'borrowed' so it's not Obama's fault. Nothing's his fault. He's misunderstood... Everyone needs to give him their lunch money and STFU...right?

[lepton]

Bingo!

But beyond that, Obma is going substantially beyond what Bush did.

.....

As a sub-note, assuming even basic principles are in play, this is yet another marker that Obama was completely talking out of his butt during the 2008 campaign.

[lepton]

Bingo!

But beyond that, Obma is going substantially beyond what Bush did.

.....

As a sub-note, assuming even basic principles are in play, this is yet another marker that Obama was completely talking out of his butt during the 2008 campaign.

[Logical me]

The complete hypocricy of the democrats is disgusting.

Democrats are Marxist/Communists and they are not interested in the Constitution or individual freedom as this document offers.