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Legal Commentary

: Balkinization

Addicted To Torture

By Jack M. Balkin

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Marc Ambinder reports that the new Administration is finding it difficult to transition from the Bush Adminstration's torture regime: "Sources say that Obama's team is having trouble finding a potential CIA director who lacks politically incriminating links to controversial Bush Administration policies and yet commands the respect of the agency's rank and file."

Indeed, far from seeking to make a break with the past, House Intelligence Chairman Silvestre Reyes has urged Obama to keep on Bush's Director of National Intelligence and CIA chief for the time being, as well as retain parts of the CIA's programs that allow "alternative" interrogation techniques go beyond what is permitted in the Army Field Manual. (Hat Tip: Glenn Greenwald).

Reading these two examples, it struck me that they have much in common with the problems of any number of countries transitioning to democracy from a long record of human rights abuses. These examples show how difficult it is for a country that has violated human rights in the past to stop.

On the one hand, many of the people who are qualified for government posts are complicit in the old regime. On the other hand, holdovers from the old regime are pretty comfortable with existing practices, and see no need to make many changes.

It is appalling to think that eight years of the Bush Administration have compromised a good chunk of its country's intelligence and military experts, as well as politicians from both parties. The past Administration has addicted us to torture, and now we are behaving like a drug addict, denying we have a problem, fearful of a life without the drug, and desperate to avoid the pains of withdrawal.

Full post as published by Balkinization on December 11, 2008 (boomark / email).

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