Posted on 04/22/2009 1:13:45 PM PDT by jazusamo
The day after opening a can of worms by saying he is open to a truth commission to investigate the authors of the controversial Bush-era enhanced interrogation memos, the White House stressed Wednesday that President Obama is neither proposing nor initiating those proceedings or the formation of a truth commission.
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs, talking to reporters aboard Air Force One as the president traveled to Iowa, said any decision to prosecute the authors of the legal memos would come from the Justice Department and "it has to be done outside of the realm of politics."
Last week, Obama publicly released the memos, which deal with controversial interrogation methods like waterboarding, but he said at the time that the Justice Department would not prosecute intelligence officers who conducted what many have called torture techniques on captured enemy combatants.
The president has come under heavy fire from Republicans including Vice President Dick Cheney and Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo.) for releasing the memos.
On Tuesday, Obama further raised the ire of the GOP when he told reporters that he is open to the creation of a Truth Commission to investigate Bush administration officials who drafted the memos authorizing the enhanced interrogation methods.
Doing damage control after the story exploded, Gibbs said Wednesday that the president would have no role in forming such a commission or prosecuting former Bush administration officials.
"If you go in the back of the plane, Air Force One, and spray-paint the walls and smoke in the bathroom, the president isnt going to determine whether you broke the law; a legal official is going to determine whether you broke the law," Gibbs said. "That's the determination that will be made in any instance whereby anybody knowingly breaks the law."
Gibbs disputed the notion that any such proceedings would be tainted by politics because they would be carried out by Attorney General Eric Holder, Obama's hand-picked top cop.
"I think that the lawyers that are involved are plenty capable of determining whether any law has been broken," Gibbs said. "I want to stress that that determination is not going to be made by the president, or the vice president, or anybody that works in the White House, because that's why many, many, many, many moons ago we created a department of justice."
Gibbs said Obama has enough "on his plate each and every day," and he continues to believe that the administration should be looking forward.
"And that's the truth -- that's why he believes that these memos and the release of these memos provide a moment of reflection, not of retribution; that the president believes that we have to look forward," Gibbs said. "And that's I think what he said Thursday, Monday and yesterday."
Good Grief!
Obama can’t just ‘divorce’ himself from his OWN JUSTICE DEPARTMENT!! LOL!! Gibbs and Obama really think people are stupid. Only the people that voted for Obama are stupid...the rest of us have our heads screwed on straight!
Suuuuure they won’t..
3 years and counting of the liberal massiah clarifying what he meant, or didn’t mean.
Government by internal polling......
But what does George Soros say? That’s the person to ask.
“Done outside the realm of politics!” Now THAT’S funny!!
yesterday i was agin it....
today i am for it....
tomorrow...well i dunno maybe..what say you totus...??
That obozo can sure talk out of both sides of his mouth. He’s such an embarrassment.
Yeah, they aren’t proposing it today, but....same as their stance on prosecutions for torture. This is the Left at work.
it’s all about what he believes
and his beliefs change hourly
a man has to believe in something!
I believe it’s time for a stiff drink
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
This guy is WORSE than the Iraqi PR guy. How he can say anything with a straight face is baffling. Eric Holder-not political. LOLOLOLOLOLOL Justice Department separate from the White House. LOLOLOLOLOLOL
He’s going to tell AG Holder to nix the entire idea.
Then Obama will say, “Well I could have gone for it, but my AG thought it was a bad idea.”
It’s his POTUS version of “voting present” and passing the buck.
Slowly the masks slips from his face, and the American people are waking up to what our new President actually is.
At the rate he’s throwing his allies under the bus, he’ll be very alone by mid-summer.
Its hard to stand on principle, when you have no principles. This guy is being jerked around like a puppet in a puppet show. Oh, wait, I guess he is a puppet in a puppet show. And dumber than a box of rocks.
I believe you’re right and I quit drinking.
Obama will not allow the Truth to interfere with his show trials, his star chambers or even his kangaroo courts.
This man tends to introduce his plans by assuring us initially that he’s not going to do something. A TRUTH commission in the UNITED STATES of AMERICA? I honestly can’t believe that this is my country.
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