Ethics

Will Holder Appoint a Special Prosecutor on Torture?

By Ed Brayton

Newsweek has an article saying that Attorney General Eric Holder may be ready to appoint a Special Prosecutor to investigate war crimes by the Bush administration, something that his boss, President Obama, has tried very hard to prevent.

Holder, 58, may be on the verge of asserting his independence in a profound way. Four knowledgeable sources tell NEWSWEEK that he is now leaning toward appointing a prosecutor to investigate the Bush administration's brutal interrogation practices, something the president has been reluctant to do. While no final decision has been made, an announcement could come in a matter of weeks, say these sources, who decline to be identified discussing a sensitive law-enforcement matter. Such a decision would roil the country, would likely plunge Washington into a new round of partisan warfare, and could even imperil Obama's domestic priorities, including health care and energy reform. Holder knows all this, and he has been wrestling with the question for months. "I hope that whatever decision I make would not have a negative impact on the president's agenda," he says. "But that can't be a part of my decision."

Full post as published by Dispatches from the Culture Wars on July 13, 2009 (boomark / email).