Attorney General Nominee Hit for Prisoner Policy

[CountAllVotes]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General nominee Alberto Gonzales faced blistering criticism on Thursday for his role in shaping administration policies blamed for contributing to the torture of terror suspects, which Democrats said had put Americans at greater risk.

"Those abuses serve as recruiting posters for the terrorists," Sen. Patrick Leahy (news, bio, voting record) of Vermont said at a Senate confirmation hearing (news - web sites) for Gonzales, President Bush (news - web sites)'s White House counsel.

"America's troops and citizens are at greater risk because of those actions," said Leahy, the Judiciary Committee (news - web sites)'s top Democrat. "The searing photographs from Abu Ghraib (prison in Iraq (news - web sites)) have made it harder to create and maintain the alliances we need to prevail."

At issue are a memo approved by Gonzales which said only the most severe types of torture were not permissible under U.S. and international agreements, and another he wrote that described parts of the half-century-old Geneva Conventions on the treatment of prisoners of war as "obsolete" or "quaint."

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/congress_gonzales_dc

[lovuian]

1. Let the Republicans put this man in as Attorney General

its proof of their guilt in Abu Ghahib!!! I hope the Democrats fillabuster here!!!

[jukes]

2. the ONLY 1 they cd find

WORSE than Inquisitor ashcroft.

[joanski01]

3. I watched a lot of the Gonzales

hearing today and came to the conclusion that he was just another bush* Cabal stooge. Just doing what they tell him to.

[Moderator]

4. DUplicate

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1126359