Concerned About Protecting Themselves

Eighteenth of 25 excerpts from The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals by Jane Mayer:

Bellinger also pushed repeatedly for the administration to adopt at least the minimum treatment standards for wartime prisoners spelled out in the Geneva Conventions just as a matter of policy -- not as binding law. Bellinger argued that the Geneva standards were clear and universally understood, and they would restore order and consistency to the treatment of detainees. If the rules were adopted just as a policy matter, not as a matter or law, it would cost the administration nothing.

But in a series of White House meetings between 2004 and 2006, other participants said that Cheney, Gonzalez, and Addington, in particular, rasied one objection after another. Their arguments were presented in terms of protecting the country from future terrorist attacks, but opponents began to suspect that they were just as concerned about protecting themselves from future legal repercussions.

Copyright 2008 by Jane Mayer. All Rights Reserved