Republicans threatening to filibuster appointments if Obama reveals Bush's torture memos

2Xtreme21

Diamond Member
Jun 13, 2004
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If the president releases the Bush torture memos, Republicans are promising to ?go nuclear? and filibuster his legal appointments. Scott Horton reports on a serious threat to Obama?s transparency.

Senate Republicans are now privately threatening to derail the confirmation of key Obama administration nominees for top legal positions by linking the votes to suppressing critical torture memos from the Bush era. A reliable Justice Department source advises me that Senate Republicans are planning to ?go nuclear? over the nominations of Dawn Johnsen as chief of the Office of Legal Counsel in the Department of Justice and Yale Law School Dean Harold Koh as State Department legal counsel if the torture documents are made public. The source says these threats are the principal reason for the Obama administration?s abrupt pullback last week from a commitment to release some of the documents. A Republican Senate source confirms the strategy. It now appears that Republicans are seeking an Obama commitment to safeguard the Bush administration?s darkest secrets in exchange for letting these nominations go forward.

Not a single Republican indicated an intention to vote for Dawn Johnsen, while Senator John Cornyn of Texas was described as ?gunning for her,? specifically noting publication of the torture memos.

Barack Obama entered Washington with a promise of transparency. One of his first acts was a presidential directive requiring that the Freedom of Information Act, a near dead letter during the Bush years, was to be enforced according to its terms. He specifically criticized the Bush administration?s practice of preparing secret memos that determined legal policy and promised to review and publish them after taking office.

But in the past week, questions about Obama?s commitment to transparency have mounted. On April 2, the Justice Department was expected to make public a set of four memoranda prepared by the Office of Legal Counsel, long sought by the American Civil Liberties Union and other advocacy organizations in a pending FOIA litigation. The memos, authored by then-administration officials and now University of California law professor John Yoo, federal appellate judge Jay Bybee and former Justice Department lawyer Stephen Bradbury, apparently grant authority for the brutal treatment of prisoners, including waterboarding, isolated confinement in coffin-like containers, and ?head smacking.? The stakes over release of the papers are increasingly high. Yoo and Bybee are both targets of a criminal investigation in a Spanish court probing the torture of five Spanish citizens formerly held in Guantánamo; also named in the Spanish case are former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and three other Bush lawyers. Legal observers in Spain consider the Bush administration lawyers at serious risk of indictment, and the memos, once released, could be entered as evidence in connection with their prosecution. Unlike the torture memos that are already public, these memos directly approve specific torture techniques and therefore present a far graver problem for their authors.

The release of the memos that the Senate Republicans want to suppress was cleared by Attorney General Eric Holder and White House counsel Greg Craig, and then was stopped when ?all hell broke loose? inside the Obama administration, according to an article by Newsweek reporter Michael Isikoff. Newsweek attributes internal opposition to disclosure of the Bush-era torture memos to White House counterterrorism adviser and former CIA official John O. Brennan, who has raised arguments that exposure of the memoranda would run afoul of policies protecting the secrecy of agency techniques and has also argued that the memos would embarrass nations like Morocco, Jordan, Pakistan, Tunisia and Egypt, which have cooperated closely with the CIA in its extraordinary renditions program. Few informed independent observers, however, find much to credit in the Brennan objections because the techniques are now well-known, as is the role of the cooperating foreign intelligence services?any references to which would in any event likely be redacted before the memoranda are released. Moreover, the argument that the confidence of those engaged in torture?serious criminal conduct under international and domestic law?should be kept because they would be ?embarrassed? if it were to come out borders on comic.

The Justice Department source confirms to me that Brennan has consistently opposed making public the torture memos?and any other details about the operations of the extraordinary renditions program?but this source suggests that concern about the G.O.P.?s roadblock in the confirmation process is the principle reason that the memos were not released. Republican senators have expressed strong reservations about their promised exposure, expressing alarm that a critique of the memos by Justice?s ethics office (Office of Professional Responsibility) will also be released. ?There was no ?direct? threat,? said the source, ?but the message was communicated clearly?if the OLC and OPR memoranda are released to the public, there will be war.? This is understood as a threat to filibuster the nominations of Johnsen and Koh. Not only are they among the most prominent academic critics of the torture memoranda, but are also viewed as the strongest advocates for release of the torture memos on Obama?s legal policy team.

A Republican Senate staffer further has confirmed to me that the Johnsen nomination was discussed at the last G.O.P. caucus meeting. Not a single Republican indicated an intention to vote for Dawn Johnsen, while Senator John Cornyn of Texas was described as ?gunning for her,? specifically noting publication of the torture memos.

No decision was taken at that Republican caucus meeting whether to filibuster or not, though Cornyn was generally believed to support filibustering Johnsen and potentially other nominees. Johnsen has met recently with moderate Republican Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, both of whom are being lobbied heavily by colleagues and religious right groups to oppose her nomination.

Both Koh and Johnsen are targets of sustained attacks coming from right-wing lobbying groups. The Daily Beast previously reviewed the attacks on Johnsen, while Slate?s Dahlia Lithwick has catalogued the recent attacks on Koh. Former Bush administration Solicitor General Ted Olson recently endorsed the Koh nomination, calling the Yale dean ?a man of great integrity.? But connecting the Obama nominations to the Bush torture memos escalates the conflict toward a thermonuclear level.

Link

How the hell can we take this party seriously? Taking two completely unrelated issues and linking them just for the sake of winning at AMERICA'S expense. Releasing the memos will really shed light on the brutality that Bush and his cronies were involved with and will show that we won't tolerate the same kind of bullshit ever again. This party of "ethical values" is simply reprehensible
 

Fear No Evil

Diamond Member
Nov 14, 2008
5,922
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0
Originally posted by: 2Xtreme21
If the president releases the Bush torture memos, Republicans are promising to ?go nuclear? and filibuster his legal appointments. Scott Horton reports on a serious threat to Obama?s transparency.

Senate Republicans are now privately threatening to derail the confirmation of key Obama administration nominees for top legal positions by linking the votes to suppressing critical torture memos from the Bush era. A reliable Justice Department source advises me that Senate Republicans are planning to ?go nuclear? over the nominations of Dawn Johnsen as chief of the Office of Legal Counsel in the Department of Justice and Yale Law School Dean Harold Koh as State Department legal counsel if the torture documents are made public. The source says these threats are the principal reason for the Obama administration?s abrupt pullback last week from a commitment to release some of the documents. A Republican Senate source confirms the strategy. It now appears that Republicans are seeking an Obama commitment to safeguard the Bush administration?s darkest secrets in exchange for letting these nominations go forward.

Not a single Republican indicated an intention to vote for Dawn Johnsen, while Senator John Cornyn of Texas was described as ?gunning for her,? specifically noting publication of the torture memos.

Barack Obama entered Washington with a promise of transparency. One of his first acts was a presidential directive requiring that the Freedom of Information Act, a near dead letter during the Bush years, was to be enforced according to its terms. He specifically criticized the Bush administration?s practice of preparing secret memos that determined legal policy and promised to review and publish them after taking office.

But in the past week, questions about Obama?s commitment to transparency have mounted. On April 2, the Justice Department was expected to make public a set of four memoranda prepared by the Office of Legal Counsel, long sought by the American Civil Liberties Union and other advocacy organizations in a pending FOIA litigation. The memos, authored by then-administration officials and now University of California law professor John Yoo, federal appellate judge Jay Bybee and former Justice Department lawyer Stephen Bradbury, apparently grant authority for the brutal treatment of prisoners, including waterboarding, isolated confinement in coffin-like containers, and ?head smacking.? The stakes over release of the papers are increasingly high. Yoo and Bybee are both targets of a criminal investigation in a Spanish court probing the torture of five Spanish citizens formerly held in Guantánamo; also named in the Spanish case are former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and three other Bush lawyers. Legal observers in Spain consider the Bush administration lawyers at serious risk of indictment, and the memos, once released, could be entered as evidence in connection with their prosecution. Unlike the torture memos that are already public, these memos directly approve specific torture techniques and therefore present a far graver problem for their authors.

The release of the memos that the Senate Republicans want to suppress was cleared by Attorney General Eric Holder and White House counsel Greg Craig, and then was stopped when ?all hell broke loose? inside the Obama administration, according to an article by Newsweek reporter Michael Isikoff. Newsweek attributes internal opposition to disclosure of the Bush-era torture memos to White House counterterrorism adviser and former CIA official John O. Brennan, who has raised arguments that exposure of the memoranda would run afoul of policies protecting the secrecy of agency techniques and has also argued that the memos would embarrass nations like Morocco, Jordan, Pakistan, Tunisia and Egypt, which have cooperated closely with the CIA in its extraordinary renditions program. Few informed independent observers, however, find much to credit in the Brennan objections because the techniques are now well-known, as is the role of the cooperating foreign intelligence services?any references to which would in any event likely be redacted before the memoranda are released. Moreover, the argument that the confidence of those engaged in torture?serious criminal conduct under international and domestic law?should be kept because they would be ?embarrassed? if it were to come out borders on comic.

The Justice Department source confirms to me that Brennan has consistently opposed making public the torture memos?and any other details about the operations of the extraordinary renditions program?but this source suggests that concern about the G.O.P.?s roadblock in the confirmation process is the principle reason that the memos were not released. Republican senators have expressed strong reservations about their promised exposure, expressing alarm that a critique of the memos by Justice?s ethics office (Office of Professional Responsibility) will also be released. ?There was no ?direct? threat,? said the source, ?but the message was communicated clearly?if the OLC and OPR memoranda are released to the public, there will be war.? This is understood as a threat to filibuster the nominations of Johnsen and Koh. Not only are they among the most prominent academic critics of the torture memoranda, but are also viewed as the strongest advocates for release of the torture memos on Obama?s legal policy team.

A Republican Senate staffer further has confirmed to me that the Johnsen nomination was discussed at the last G.O.P. caucus meeting. Not a single Republican indicated an intention to vote for Dawn Johnsen, while Senator John Cornyn of Texas was described as ?gunning for her,? specifically noting publication of the torture memos.

No decision was taken at that Republican caucus meeting whether to filibuster or not, though Cornyn was generally believed to support filibustering Johnsen and potentially other nominees. Johnsen has met recently with moderate Republican Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, both of whom are being lobbied heavily by colleagues and religious right groups to oppose her nomination.

Both Koh and Johnsen are targets of sustained attacks coming from right-wing lobbying groups. The Daily Beast previously reviewed the attacks on Johnsen, while Slate?s Dahlia Lithwick has catalogued the recent attacks on Koh. Former Bush administration Solicitor General Ted Olson recently endorsed the Koh nomination, calling the Yale dean ?a man of great integrity.? But connecting the Obama nominations to the Bush torture memos escalates the conflict toward a thermonuclear level.

Link

How the hell can we take this party seriously? Taking two completely unrelated issues and linking them just for the sake of winning at AMERICA'S expense. Releasing the memos will really shed light on the brutality that Bush and his cronies were involved with and will show that we won't tolerate the same kind of bullshit ever again. This party of "ethical values" is simply reprehensible

HANG BUSH BUT LET THE GITMO TERRORISTS FREE!!!! Democrat party priorities here. Bush would have been better of setting roadside bombs that killed Americans because the democrats would have no outrage over that.
 

2Xtreme21

Diamond Member
Jun 13, 2004
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Originally posted by: Fear No Evil

HANG BUSH BUT LET THE GITMO TERRORISTS FREE!!!! Democrat party priorities here. Bush would have been better of setting roadside bombs that killed Americans because the democrats would have no outrage over that.

Yep. They're setting them absolutely free alright. Right into your back yard. Or did you just glaze over the big part where it said THEY WOULDN'T BE SET FREE!? It's called giving them a fair trial, nutjob.

Nice try sticking up for your cronies, though.
 

heyheybooboo

Diamond Member
Jun 29, 2007
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Oh, I think if the the memos were released it would embarrass the USA a lot more than Morocco, Jordan, Pakistan, Tunisia and Egypt ...

 

Fear No Evil

Diamond Member
Nov 14, 2008
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Originally posted by: 2Xtreme21
Originally posted by: Fear No Evil

HANG BUSH BUT LET THE GITMO TERRORISTS FREE!!!! Democrat party priorities here. Bush would have been better of setting roadside bombs that killed Americans because the democrats would have no outrage over that.

Yep. They're setting them absolutely free alright. Right into your back yard. Or did you just glaze over the big part where it said THEY WOULDN'T BE SET FREE!? It's called giving them a fair trial, nutjob.

Nice try sticking up for your cronies, though.

Can we charge Obama with war crimes then too for not letting them free? Or stopping Bush's policies in Iraq and Afghanistan?
 

2Xtreme21

Diamond Member
Jun 13, 2004
7,044
0
0
Originally posted by: Fear No Evil
Originally posted by: 2Xtreme21
Originally posted by: Fear No Evil

HANG BUSH BUT LET THE GITMO TERRORISTS FREE!!!! Democrat party priorities here. Bush would have been better of setting roadside bombs that killed Americans because the democrats would have no outrage over that.

Yep. They're setting them absolutely free alright. Right into your back yard. Or did you just glaze over the big part where it said THEY WOULDN'T BE SET FREE!? It's called giving them a fair trial, nutjob.

Nice try sticking up for your cronies, though.

Can we charge Obama with war crimes then too for not letting them free? Or stopping Bush's policies in Iraq and Afghanistan?

What the fuck? Now you're just arguing for the sake of arguing. Typical Republican I'm guessing, eh?
 

nageov3t

Lifer
Feb 18, 2004
42,808
83
91
should this thread be locked for being based around pure speculation?

unnamed sources FTL, who knows who this "reliable justice department source" is.
 

JSFLY

Golden Member
Mar 24, 2006
1,068
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Originally posted by: Fear No Evil
HANG BUSH BUT LET THE GITMO TERRORISTS FREE!!!! Democrat party priorities here. Bush would have been better of setting roadside bombs that killed Americans because the democrats would have no outrage over that.

If that were the democrat's prerogative, it would have happened already. Bush Cheney and the gang would be in jail and your next door neighbor would be Muhamed Al-Queazeen.

Your oversimplifying a complex situation and making false assumptions.
 

brandonbull

Diamond Member
May 3, 2005
6,365
1,223
126
Originally posted by: 2Xtreme21

How the hell can we take this party seriously? Taking two completely unrelated issues and linking them just for the sake of winning at AMERICA'S expense. Releasing the memos will really shed light on the brutality that Bush and his cronies were involved with and will show that we won't tolerate the same kind of bullshit ever again. This party of "ethical values" is simply reprehensible

As if the Dems are a bunch of nice people. The Dems are only doing this to further their polictical power at America's expense. Repubs or Dems don't care what's best for America, but what's best for their pursuit of power and money.

 

Genx87

Lifer
Apr 8, 2002
41,091
513
126
This sounds like a bunch of rumors and wishful thinking. Linking the Obama's administration refusal to release the memo's to republicans filibustering judicial nominee's.

Lets find somethign with a little more evidence than unamed source.

I think Obama would welcome this confrontation. I dont see how he can lose. He gets to paint the republicans as trying to cover up for Bush by black mailing him.

Personally I think Obama's team got to view the memo's and decided some of this should be kept secret.

I guess time will tell if more information comes to light. This sounds way too politically risky for Republicans over an unpopular president. I dont see how they can win.
 

OCGuy

Lifer
Jul 12, 2000
27,224
37
91
I thought we lock rumor threads now?


"A reliable Justice Department source advises me that Senate Republicans are planning to ?go nuclear?




I say lock this sucker down until there is some real proof out there. Until then, this is a just a bomb-throwing left-wing hit piece. Nothing to see here....


I'm not locking anything so stop whining about it. If you have a question about the moderation or the rules post them in PFI, PM the Mod account or Derek.


Anandtech Senior Moderator
Red Dawn
 

Phokus

Lifer
Nov 20, 1999
22,994
779
126
Republicans are lower than dog sh*t

I hope Obama releases these memo's after the confirmations just to show the world what a sub-human piece of garbage Bush was and those who voted for him.
 
Nov 30, 2006
15,456
389
121
Originally posted by: Phokus
Republicans are lower than dog sh*t

I hope Obama releases these memo's after the confirmations just to show the world what a sub-human piece of garbage Bush was and those who voted for him.
Wow. You never cease to amaze.
 

Phokus

Lifer
Nov 20, 1999
22,994
779
126
Originally posted by: Doc Savage Fan
Originally posted by: Phokus
Republicans are lower than dog sh*t

I hope Obama releases these memo's after the confirmations just to show the world what a sub-human piece of garbage Bush was and those who voted for him.
Wow. You never cease to amaze.

Yes, what i say is shocking, whereas Bush authorizing torture is cheered on by the GOP. This is the Republican mentality folks.
 

OCGuy

Lifer
Jul 12, 2000
27,224
37
91
Originally posted by: Phokus
Republicans are lower than dog sh*t

I hope Obama releases these memo's after the confirmations just to show the world what a sub-human piece of garbage Bush was and those who voted for him.

So why is Obama trying to protect the memos?



You are another one of those guys, huh?
 

Phokus

Lifer
Nov 20, 1999
22,994
779
126
Originally posted by: OCguy
Originally posted by: Phokus
Republicans are lower than dog sh*t

I hope Obama releases these memo's after the confirmations just to show the world what a sub-human piece of garbage Bush was and those who voted for him.

So why is Obama trying to protect the memos?



You are another one of those guys, huh?

He's already released the Yoo memo's authorizing torture, i'll wait and see what he does with the rest.

 

Titan

Golden Member
Oct 15, 1999
1,819
0
0
Can I ask a non-partisan, half-decent question? (Not rhetorical, I'm looking for answers)

Has Obama yet released any hidden documents pre-Bush era? Or announced intentions to?

I realize W. had one of the most secret administrations ever, but secrecy has been the norm in washington for decades now. When we aren't blatantly stonewalled we are more skillfully misdirected or placated publicly then nothing actually happens.

Because if this new Obama transparency policy only applies to Bush, he's just playing the blame game and not really changing anything.

But I am asking because I wasn't sure.
 

MagicConch

Golden Member
Apr 7, 2005
1,239
1
0
I am surprised most of the Republicans are not demanding for the memos to be released just to prove they are not connected to Bush and his legacy. Perhaps that will come later when the full extent of it, either positive or negative, becomes more obvious.
 

ZeGermans

Banned
Dec 14, 2004
907
0
0
Originally posted by: Genx87
This sounds like a bunch of rumors and wishful thinking. Linking the Obama's administration refusal to release the memo's to republicans filibustering judicial nominee's.

Lets find somethign with a little more evidence than unamed source.

I think Obama would welcome this confrontation. I dont see how he can lose. He gets to paint the republicans as trying to cover up for Bush by black mailing him.

Personally I think Obama's team got to view the memo's and decided some of this should be kept secret.

I guess time will tell if more information comes to light. This sounds way too politically risky for Republicans over an unpopular president. I dont see how they can win.

Yes, just like the Schaivo memo was a grand plot to discredit the GOP and not at all exactly what it was at face value: republicans being evil

Also it's pretty laughable that whatever idiot fascist with american flag avatar #2112 said about gitmo terrorists. You do realize they're there without charges because there's no evidence to charge them with anything? A lot of them are there for the crime of being brown in a warzone and being found by a poor headhunter.
 

Genx87

Lifer
Apr 8, 2002
41,091
513
126
Originally posted by: ZeGermans
Yes, just like the Schaivo memo was a grand plot to discredit the GOP and not at all exactly what it was at face value: republicans being evil

Also it's pretty laughable that whatever idiot fascist with american flag avatar #2112 said about gitmo terrorists. You do realize they're there without charges because there's no evidence to charge them with anything? A lot of them are there for the crime of being brown in a warzone and being found by a poor headhunter.

Like I said lets find some other evidence except anon sources. My post articulates why it is a lose lose for the Republicans and a Win Win for Obama. If the Republicans were really doing this I cant imagine how Obama and his team havent already run crazy on them.

But maybe it is true. Right now this is an article written on rumors without much backing it.
 

miketheidiot

Lifer
Sep 3, 2004
11,060
1
0
Originally posted by: Genx87
This sounds like a bunch of rumors and wishful thinking. Linking the Obama's administration refusal to release the memo's to republicans filibustering judicial nominee's.

Lets find somethign with a little more evidence than unamed source.

I think Obama would welcome this confrontation. I dont see how he can lose. He gets to paint the republicans as trying to cover up for Bush by black mailing him.

Personally I think Obama's team got to view the memo's and decided some of this should be kept secret.

I guess time will tell if more information comes to light. This sounds way too politically risky for Republicans over an unpopular president. I dont see how they can win.

i agree, this looks like a lose/lose for republicans
 

cubeless

Diamond Member
Sep 17, 2001
4,295
1
81
damn...

this is all just political bullshit...

if they want to make america a 'better place', then review the documents and enact legislation to do what you think necessary.

anything else is purely to try to get some political advantage... not exactly bolstering the 'new way' blather...

to me it seems that it should embarasses the dems, too, since for years they've been running the committees that could have done things to fix these inequities...
 

Harvey

Administrator<br>Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
35,057
67
91
Originally posted by: 2Xtreme21

Topic Title: Republicans threatening to filibuster appointments if Obama reveals Bush's torture memos

Let 'em try. They'll make public asses of themselves and prove they're more interested in continuing their march to tyranny than in holding their EX-Traitor In Chief and his criminal cabal responsible for their monstrous crimes.

Originally posted by: Fear No Evil

HANG BUSH...

That's the smartest thing you've ever posted on the forums. :thumbsup:

... BUT LET THE GITMO TERRORISTS FREE!!!!

Aw... Too bad. You fail again. First, you have to prove which ones are terrorists, especially since there is no evidence to support that charge or any other crime against far too many of them.

Democrat party priorities here.

Damned right. Democrats won the election by a large majority. We get to call the shots until the next election. That's how it works in our Democratic nation. :thumbsup:

Or would you favor an armed unconstitutional, illegal insurrection? :shocked:

Bush would have been better of setting roadside bombs that killed Americans because the democrats would have no outrage over that.

Bush would be better sitting in his own cell at Guantanamo. If you're so gung ho for waterboarding, and you don't think it's torture, he'd be a great crash test dummy to prove the point. He's already got the "dummy" part down. :cool:
 

BMW540I6speed

Golden Member
Aug 26, 2005
1,055
0
0
If what the defenders of the CIA's tactics say is true, then there should be no need to conceal the memo's because their contents wouldn't be particularly controversial. If, on the other hand, the memo's are damning then the people who are willing to defend our interrogation practices are clearly lying.

I'm sure the memo's show congressional Democrats knew alot more about torture than they are comfortable admitting in public. One of the Bush Administration's claims has always been that they kept Congressional leaders in the loop on DOJ policy. The various Democrats in congress who sat on those committees have always been real cagey in their replies about how much they knew and when.

Some of those memos either expressly state or strongly imply that key leaders in Congress were fully briefed on torture policies and Obama is trying to figure out a way to cover for them. Get Rid of Them. Obama needs to purge his administration of the "Cover-up Corps" and put knowledgeable, honest and dedicated people in its place.

Now...If the Republicans are trying to block them with threats such as whats posted in the OP..

The solution would be simple...

President Obama should call a press conference announcing their immediate release, and name the Republican Senators who are making the threats. Detail in no uncertain terms what the Republicans are trying to do, what they are trying to keep concealed, and for a little extra political oomph, wage a guess as to why they might be inclined to do so.

With this solution you are assuming that Dems and Reps. are on opposite sides. While that's certainly the face they put on, I would not make that assumption, either with this particular issue, the financial bailout fiasco, or in general. Their overall behavior strongly suggests otherwise.

If what Horton reports end up being true, this is a huge political gift to Obama and he should absolutely call their bluff. Only the lizzard brain wing of the Republican party will object to the release of these memo's. No matter what the political implications are, not releasing them is inexcusable. If the leadership of the "opposition party" is so publicly bent on advocacy of torture and the protection of those who ordered it from legal consequence, there will be no reason for the international community to further await the American response to the clear demands of international law.

Again if the reports are true, Obama must not cave on this. Take them to the mat. There is less justification for any Republican taking a concerted position that a commitment to enforcing the laws - including those against torture - is a basis for engaging in a filibuster. Make them do it. It's disgraceful and they can't do it for long without demonstrating just how morally and intellectually indefensible this is.