Apologetics 101

“If the president does it, that means it’s not illegal.” Richard Nixon, 1977.

"And so, by definition, if it was authorized by the president, it did not violate our obligations under the Conventions Against Torture." Condaleezza Rice, 2009.

[Via Foreign Policy]



Oh, that part about "Did you know that the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe said Guantanamo was a model medium security prison?" Here's what the OCSE had to say about that back in 2006:

The OSCE Spokesperson said that, in the light of these reports, he wished to make it clear the Organization itself had not sent an expert to Guantanamo: "The person quoted in several of the stories as "an OSCE expert", Professor Alain Grignard, accompanied the delegation despatched by the Parliamentary Assembly, based in Copenhagen, but he was not employed or commissioned by the OSCE."

Damn, these people know how to stretch a fig leaf! A few "make-it-up-as-you-go" memos, one friendly opinion from a carefully-scheduled foreigner, and that's all the proof we should need that Guantanamo was a model prison and no one (by definition) could have been tortured.

And that part about Nazi Germany being less of a threat to America than the al-Quaeda ... imagine that we could somehow manipulate history and offer Condaleezza Rice this choice:

(a) Germany loses, 9/11 happens
(b) Germany wins, 9/11 never happens

... she would choose (b)?

Well, she did say that foreign policy is tricky and you don't always get to choose who you work with. I'm sure she would have been pragmatic.