Holder during confirmation: "the President cannot 'immunize' torture"

[ProSense]

Obama: Holder Will Decide Whether To Prosecute Torture Authors, Supports Bipartisan Truth Commission:

<...>

Obama is effectively putting the ball in Holder's court. Recall, during his Senate confirmation hearing, Holder said that the President cannot "immunize" torture and must enforce the law in all cases:

LEAHY: Do you believe that the president of the United States has authority to exercise a commander-in-chief override and immunize acts of torture? I ask that because we did not get a satisfactory answer from Former Attorney General Gonzales on that.

HOLDER: Mr. Chairman, no one is above the law. The president has a constitutional obligation to faithfully execute the laws of the United States. There are obligations that we have as a result of treaties that we have signed -- obligations, obviously, in the Constitution. Where Congress has passed a law, it is the obligation of the president, or the commander-in-chief, to follow those laws. <...>

If one looks at the various statutes that have been passed, it is my belief that the president does not have the power that you've indicated.

<...>

[Raineyb]

1. I look forward to hearing about some investigations and indictments. n/t

[Supersedeas]

3. a Nation of Cowards waits for the actions of AG Holder

and the world is watching.

[roguevalley]

7. I mentioned that Obama couldn't excuse them and got pounded

by some dipshit yesterday. I didn't bother to reply to them. This is a good read. thank you.

[Beetwasher]

2. Great Pull, Prosense!

:thumbsup:

PROSECUTIONS ARE COMING!!!!!

[vaberella]

4. I knew he said such things during his confirmation...

thanks for posting it. Someone had asked this and I remember watching his statements on C-span.

[ProSense]

8. Evidently, some believe that Obama

doesn't remember his own AG nominee's statement. Any chance Obama knew this before Holder said it?

[vaberella]

9. I suspect he did. I suspect they discussed it during the closed WH interviews.

Remember that Repub that dropped out of the WH because, what I think was, political pressure?!

Well he said that he had a closed room interview with the president over him taking over the position. So I'm thinking this was one of the conversations. There's no way it wasn't. O doesn't roll like that and I suspect O and AG Holder knew this would come up during the interview at the Senate confirmation meeting. So they were definitely in the KNOW and this was being played well by O.

[Egnever]

5. Good stuff

:yourock:

[wryter2000]

6. Do the right thing, Holder

I'm hoping Obama and Holder have a really good good cop/bad cop thing going on here.