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The New Print Edition of CounterPunch, Only for Our Newsletter Subscribers! How Cops Extort Confessions;
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The New Print Edition of CounterPunch, Only for Our Newsletter Subscribers!
How Cops Extort Confessions;
How the U.S. “Justice System” Really WorksNinety-two per cent of felony convictions in the U.S. are obtained by plea bargains or confessions. Without them the “justice system” would grind to a halt. In an important piece in our latest newsletter, available only to subscribers, Emily Horowitz shows how totally innocent people will “confess” under police pressure, even without physical torture. Horowitz outlines the powerful case for banning confessions altogether. Also in this new edition Marcus Rediker, co-author of the legendary The Many Headed Hydra, writes of popular heroism and resistance in the favelas of Medellin, Colombia. Alexander Cockburn reports on how America’s oldest bank, patronized by the global elites, washed billions smuggled out of Russia, and how the Russians might win their money back, shaking the world’s banking system if they do so. Serge Halimi describes the real battle for the soul of Europe. Get your copy today by subscribing online or calling 1-800-840-3683 Contributions to CounterPunch are tax-deductible. Click here to make a donation. If you find our site useful please: Subscribe Now! CounterPunch books and gear make great presents.
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Today's Stories August 13, 2008 Paul Craig Roberts August 12, 2008 Uri Avnery Anthony DiMaggio Bill Christison Eric Walberg Kate Connolly Diane Farsetta Peter Morici Thom Rutledge Lee Patton Niranjan Ramakrishnan Website of the Day August 11, 2008 Ishmael Reed Paul Craig Roberts Gary Leupp Douglas Kammen William Willers Greg Moses Jeff Leys Cynthia McKinney Alan Farago Website of the Day August 9 / 10, 2008 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair Bruce Jackson Kevin Young Chris Floyd Joshua Frank Robert Fantina Brendan Cooney Mark Almond Lois Gibbs Rev. William Alberts Kathy Kelly John Ross David Michael Green Bill Moyers / Ron Jacobs Richard Rhames David Yearsley Lee Sustar Brenda Norrell Ben Terrall Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend August 8, 2008 Patrick Cockburn Manuel Garcia, Jr. M. Shahid Alam Andy Worthington Lawrence J. Korb David Model Alan Farago Diop Olugbala Firmin DeBrabander Website of the Day August 7, 2008 Dr. Trudy Bond William Blum Paul Craig Roberts Ralph Nader Robert Weitzel Jacob G. Hornberger Binoy Kampmark David Macaray Howard Lisnoff Website of the Day August 6, 2008 Marc Herold Greg Moses Sheldon Rampton Kevin Young Michael Estrada Robert Weissman Dr. Susan Block Cindy Sheehan Ace Hoffman Website of the Day August 5, 2008 Paul Craig Roberts Jeff Halper Patrick Cockburn Nancy Welch Peter Morici Sousan Hammad Eamon Martin Shepherd Bliss Tim Matson Website of the Day August 4, 2008 Uri Avnery Saul Landau David W. Remington Rev. Jesse Jackson Dave Lindorff Peter Morici Joanne Mariner Ramzy Baroud Christian Wright Website of the Day August 2 / 3, 2008 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair Patrick Cockburn Winslow T. Wheeler James Abourezk Andy Worthington Brian Cloughley Robert Fantina Benjamin Dangl Marlene Martin David Yearsley Fatemeh Keshavarz David Michael Green Obama as Dukakis Harvey Wasserman Jason Hribal Phyllis Pollack Laray Polk Ron Jacobs David Macaray David Rosen Dan Bacher Joe Allen Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend August 1, 2008 Jonathan Cook Nikolas Kozloff Rannie Amiri Peter Morici Christopher Brauchli M. K. Bhadrakumar Patrick Cockburn James J. Brittain Dan Bacher Website of the Day
July 31, 2008 Michael Hudson Carl Finamore Mike Whitney Joshua Frank Andy Worthington Ralph Nader Bill Moyers / Robert Weissman Dave Lindorff Website of the Day July 30, 2008 Brian M. Downing Chuck Spinney William S. Lind David Ker Thomson Karl Grossman Mike Whitney Martha Rosenberg James Murren Dave Lindorff Ron Jacobs Website of the Day July 29, 2008 Jeffrey St. Clair John Ross Peter Morici Alison Weir Gary Leupp David Macaray Brenda Norrell Marjorie Cohn Eric Ruder Website of the Day July 28, 2008 Dr. Bryant Welch Kathy Kelly Mike Whitney Peter Morici Christopher Brauchli Clifton Ross Stephen Lendman Website of the Day
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August 13, 2008 Could This Be The One?Forgery, Fakery and Fatigue (Scandal, That Is)By DAVID REMINGTON Okay, quick show of hands: who was surprised by the recent “revelation” in Ron Suskind’s new book, The Way of the World: A Story of Truth and Hope in an age of Extremism, that the Bush White House directed the C.I.A. to forge a letter from the Iraqi head of intelligence to Saddam Hussein designed to portray a false link between the September 11 attacks and Iraq? That’s what I thought. Unless you’ve been living under a rock or otherwise hopelessly deluded by the endless stream of neocon propaganda sludge, this latest from Suskind is just another tendril in the dark churning cloud of villainy the Bush Administration has left in its wake. If I may steal from the Bard, there’s the rub. Has the public grown so inured with reports of the lies, scandals, fabrications, and bizarre schemes that have dribbled almost daily from this White House, that this story be greeted with a large, collective yawn? That may well be the case, but there are legal and logistical implications to this latest bit of Keystone Cop-style cloak and dagger plot that may give it legs. According to Suskind, high-level Bush Administration officials ordered the C.I.A. to forge a hand-written letter purportedly from Tahir Jalil Habbush, Saddam’s intelligence chief, to Saddam, indicating, among other things, that Mohammed Atta, infamous September 11th hijacker, had been trained in Iraq. The letter was dated July 1, 2001, but its “existence” reported in late 2003, at a time when the United States was still fumbling around searching for non-existent WMD’s. This bogus letter came in handy to supply a much-desired justification for attacking Iraq, and naturally, influence U.S. public opinion. The story of the letter was picked up and reported with orgasmic glee by such towering journalistic giants as the Fair and Balanced-Meister himself, Bill O’Reilly. Now, even assuming a Congress that actually cared about the Constitution and the Rule of Law, and congressional leadership with the testicular fortitude to pursue the matter, the reign of mad King George will soon be ending, and there likely is not time to the realize the blessings of this revelation in the short time remaining in this presidential term. Yet, this story could very well survive the end of the current administration and become a gift that keeps on giving. Ron Suskind speculates that this flimsy scheme could very well violate a federal statute prohibiting the C.I.A. from pursing covert activities designed to influence public opinion or the media. When directed by the White House, the deliberate violation of this law is a potentially impeachable offence. The statute Suskind is referring to is 50 U.S.C § 413b Presidential approval and reporting of covert activities. This section of law details the circumstances under which the president may approve covert activities of the C.I.A. It also lists requirements for reporting to Congress and congressional oversight. More specifically, 50 U.S.C. § 413b(f) reads, “No covert action may be conducted which is intended to influence United States political processes, public opinion, policies, or media.” If this White House scam is proven, we can be certain that the Bush Administration, or its legal defenders, will attempt to scuttle any investigation or prosecution. The road blocks thrown up will likely be variations of the following, all of which could easily fall against the hand of any reasonably diligent investigator or prosecutor: Statutory Interpretation One angle for Bush Administration defenders is to claim simply that the statute does not apply to the forged letter. After all, the U.S. had already invaded Iraq, and besides, the forgery was developed to influence international, not domestic opinion. Nice try, as they say, but this approach is transparently evasive, and well, let’s face it, lame. There is no question that public opinion was turning by late 2003, and the Bush Administration certainly desired a little public relations pick-me-up. It was also clear that the story would make into the U.S. media and be used by the war’s defenders. Executive Privilege Always a favorite of tyrannical executive branch leaders, the Bush Administration, or its legal successors are almost certain to trot out this old horse. The problem is that Executive Privilege, when applied, is generally seen as a shield against those seeking to pierce the wall of confidence between the executive branch and its top advisors. Without it, so the story goes, presidents would be constrained from seeking frank advice. By the same token, those advisers would be loath to engage in frank discussions with the executive, fearful that their words could someday make it in to the public domain. Again, in the forged letter scenario, the Executive Privilege argument falls flat. Clearly the claim would not be used as a shield, but as a sword to justify actually directing a federal agency to engage in potentially illegal behavior. Further, Section 413b Subsections b and c explicitly provide for reporting to Congress of presidential approvals of covert activities. Executive Privilege has just left the building. National Security Another horse, older and more tired than Executive Privilege, would be almost sure to raise its wizened head in the event of an investigation or prosecution. Bush Administration defenders would argue that such information cannot be discussed in public in the interest of national security. Now, courts have been historically kind to presidents and stretched this concept about as thin as it can go without breaking. However, the same weaknesses that apply to the Executive Privilege “defense” apply to the National Security argument. One just cannot escape the fact that if the concocted forgery scam is true, it was carried out in direct violation of a specific federal statute created to curtail just such behavior. And again, the provisions for congressional oversight belie any claim that activity of this nature could not be investigated. As the days of the Bush Administration come to a close, it will be interesting to see where this story goes. Congress has the tools to flesh out the facts, and the legal footing to push back against the standard administration stonewalling. Whether Congress will do its job remains to be seen. In the weeks and months to come more information will likely emerge about the forged letter scam. As more facts come to light, it seems more and more possible that Ron Suskind’s revelation is true (see Joe Conason’s piece in Salon, New Evidence Suggest Ron Suskind is Right). In the meantime maybe we can dream that finally this is the one. David W. Remington, J.D., a former law professor, works as legal counsel in private industry in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. He can be reached at: drem1960@yahoo.com
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