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Senate in 90-9 Vote Passes Bill Seeking Clearer Detainee Rules
WSJ (subscription req'd)Defying the White House, the Senate voted overwhelmingly to require the Pentagon to set clearer standards for interrogating prisoners and take steps to prohibit "cruel, inhumane or degrading" treatment of military detainees. The 90-9 roll call endorses efforts by Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz.) to establish the Army Field Manual as the uniform standard for the interrogation of any person "in the custody or under the effective control" of the Defense Department. The margin is far more than the two-thirds majority needed to overcome a threatened veto. With President Bush due to deliver a major address today on his Iraq policy and the terrorism war, the vote highlights increasing divisions among Republicans over the administration's handling of the prisoner issue. The White House has repeatedly raised veto threats against the McCain amendment, with Vice President Cheney and others warning that Congress would intrude on executive authority to conduct the war against terrorism. McCain should take over as Secretary of Defense if he thinks he can do it better than Rummy. Meantime, he pisses on the pant legs of those charged with conducting the war. Posted by: Captain America 2005-10-06 |
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