Perspective

As a followup to the earlier Guantanamo post, some perspective. These trials were not new news, of course... in fact, they were hinted at last October-

Politically motivated officials at the Pentagon have pushed for convictions of high-profile detainees ahead of the 2008 elections, the former lead prosecutor for terrorism trials at Guantanamo Bay said last night, adding that the pressure played a part in his decision to resign earlier this month.

Senior defense officials discussed in a September 2006 meeting the "strategic political value" of putting some prominent detainees on trial, said Air Force Col. Morris Davis. He said that he felt pressure to pursue cases that were deemed "sexy" over those that prosecutors believed were the most solid or were ready to go...

And short of looking for capturing the elusive bin Laden, what case is 'sexier' than that of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed?



In that 2007 article, Col. Davis added-

"There was a big concern that the election of 2008 is coming up," Davis said. "People wanted to get the cases going. There was a rush to get high-interest cases into court at the expense of openness."

Indeed. There are many, many others being held at Guantanamo who have never been accused by the administration of any crime, other than of being potential 'evil-doers'. Many have been released without any explanation of why they were there to begin with. Etc. The few Khalid Sheik Mohammeds of Guantanamo are the exception, not the rule.

Finally, it should also be remembered that KSM's transfer to Guantanamo came in the Fall of 2006, right before the midterm elections, at a time when the administration was browbeating Congress into passing his Military Commissions Act, in a move that the administration admitted was political in nature. This administration is shameless and worthy of contempt.

The evil, vulgar nature of Khalid Sheik Mohammed and his ilk do not erase that. Had the administration handled these cases the right, legal way from the beginning, we would not be having this debate right now. As this story moves forward, I hope someone will remember all these pesky facts.