Senate Supports Interrogation Limits (90-9 vote to protect terrorist detainees)

Washington Post ^ | Oct. 6, 2005 | Charles Babington and Shailagh Murray

[FairOpinion]

The Senate defied the White House yesterday and voted to set new limits on interrogating detainees in Iraq and elsewhere, underscoring Congress's growing concerns about reports of abuse of suspected terrorists and others in military custody.

Forty-six Republicans joined 43 Democrats and one independent in voting to define and limit interrogation techniques that U.S. troops may use against terrorism suspects, the latest sign that alarm over treatment of prisoners in the Middle East and at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is widespread in both parties. The White House had fought to prevent the restrictions, with Vice President Cheney visiting key Republicans in July and a spokesman yesterday repeating President Bush's threat to veto the larger bill that the language is now attached to -- a $440 billion military spending measure.

But last night, 89 senators sided with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), a former prisoner of war in Vietnam who led the fight for the interrogation restrictions.

[Polybius]

Band of sissies realizes elections are around the corner. What a pack of spineless turds.

We have to realize that the days of the noble citizen legislator are long since over.

Be they Democrat or Republican, the modern professional politician is often an individual whose greatest fear is losing reelection and reverting back to "unemployed nobody" status. As a result, they will do or say whatever it takes to get reelected. They have the spine of a chocolate eclair.

[FairOpinion]

Please go to post 37 for the full text -- read it and weep.



http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1497443/posts?page=37#37

[Soul Seeker]

NAYs ---9
Allard (R-CO)
Bond (R-MO)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Roberts (R-KS)
Sessions (R-AL)
Stevens (R-AK)

Coincidentally, the only people I respect are in the nay column.

Aside from these nine, every other damn Senator can go to hell. Lose their elections for all I damn well care at this point. If Republicans in Congress cannot even stand strong in the WOT, we're about through.

Thanks a lot for nothing.

[FairOpinion]

"If Republicans in Congress cannot even stand strong in the WOT, we're about through."

====


That's why this vote is so devastating. They voted to surrender.

[SE Mom]

Allen voted for this?

[DTogo]

August, 1814. Time for a repeat of history.

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

[In its statement on the veto threat, the White House said the measure would "restrict the president's authority to protect Americans effectively from terrorist attack and bringing terrorists to justice."]

Well roger that! Looks like congress has finally passed the first bill that GW will veto.

[RushCrush]

Total wusses. Total.

[The Red Zone]

If it does anywhere near this well in the House then it's override city.

[Rock_n_Roll_Republican]

The thing is, even if Bush does veto it (and I'm not convinced that he will, but time will tell). There are still way too many Yea votes for this to be able to override the veto. In this type of situation, seriously, what can we really do? Outside of speaking at the ballot box, of course.

[steveegg]

Jabbing at the administration in which he served, retired four-star general and former Secretary of State Colin Powell backed McCain's amendment, which he said in a letter would "help deal with the terrible public diplomacy crisis created by Abu Ghraib."

Well, that's the only way to get quoted by the presstitutes nowadays.

[oceanview]

yes. they all fear being "in favor of torture". the MSM has won the fight to frame the debate on this. anything short of full constitutional rights for terrorist detainees is "torture".

if this passes, we should move as quickly as possible to close Gitmo. what's the sense of having it - we are better off using foreign prisons and secret prisons.

[oceanview]

Bush can veto it - and for once, mount a campaign using the bully pulpit to explain to americans, day after day, what is going on here and what is at stake, and trash the senators (on both sides) who voted for it. then let them re-vote to override and see where the chips fall.

in politics, either you are on offense - or you are losing.

[WhistlingPastTheGraveyard]

The bill has "white flag" written all over it.

This Senate just sold out the war.

[WhistlingPastTheGraveyard]

Laugh if you want to, but this vote was brought to us courtesy of the New York Times, et al.

No laughing here. You're spot on.

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

[...retired four-star general and former Secretary of State Colin Powell backed McCain's amendment, which he said in a letter would "help deal with the terrible public diplomacy crisis created by Abu Ghraib."]

More proof that Liberalism is a mental disorder, which, among other symptoms, manifests a loss of will for self-preservation.

[steveegg]

Please excuse me while I go puke

H-H-R-L-!-!-!

Now that that's out of the way, this is a horrid idea. I suppose next the Air Force will have to fly the speaker-equipped C-130s around before each battle to announce that this is a raid, and that the troops will have to read the Miranda rights to every POW.

[flashbunny]

Maybe clinton took the veto stamp with him, along with the white house silverware.

[SE Mom]

God how I hate the MSM.

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

And so the MSM vultures wins a major victory for the terrorists and the ACLU.

They will win up until the time when the 2nd Amendment kicks in. Unfortunately, many thousands will have been needlessly sacrificed on the altar of political correctness before then.