October 09, 2007
"A bill for the relief of Khaled al-Masri"
The Supreme Court decision in the case of Khaled al-Masri, kidnapped and tortured by the CIA as the result of a mistake, could hardly be more disgusting. But it needn't be the end of the matter.
If the courts won't do justice, Congress has its own capacity, in the form of a private relief bill. Hearings on that bill — behind closed doors, if truly necessary for security reasons — could determine the truth. (I look forward to Mr. Tenet's sworn testimony as to why he decided to call the victim of his agency's blundering cruelty a liar.) The final act for relief could be made veto-proof by riding it on, let's say, the wiretapping-authority bill the Administration so badly wants.
I wonder how many of the libertarians outraged by the Kelo decision about eminent domain — where at least the property-owners were entitled to compensation — will speak out against the government's authority to torture whomever it pleases without making any reparation. Not many, I'd warrant.
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