A friend writes:
On the Times “kill list” story–has anyone asked what the hell David Alexrod was doing in the room in the Tuesday sessions when they picked the people to kill? Karl Rove was nearly indicted for picking U.S. attorneys who should be sacked; this seems far worse. From the Times story [emphasis mine]:
David Axelrod, the president’s closest political adviser, began showing up at the “Terror Tuesday” meetings, his unspeaking presence a visible reminder of what everyone understood: a successful attack would overwhelm the president’s other aspirations and achievements.
And look at this spooky little interchange on Morning Joe–all the liberals approving of Obama’s kill list, and praising his deeply moving assumption of “moral responsibility” for the drone strikes (with no oversight, no positive and public rules, hence no chance for any but symbolic responsibility). John Heilemann is wired and giggly, Mika Brzezinski has no doubts at all, the third guy just talks about how well it will spin and Tina Brown is selling her magazine. Only Scarborough is troubled– and he doesn’t back down. He has the guts to make the comparison with torture, and keeps slowly shaking his head. He makes it a point about the decisions being taken in the wrong office; he neglects the lack of oversight and accountability, which matters more. Nevertheless, I think this is the real division in American politics, under all the other divisions. The morally dead who only care about “blowback,” against those who care about injustice itself and see some relation between injustice and unchecked power.
we’re in Bizarro World nowadays (as Justin Raimondo calls it) where old norms have been chucked out the window and our national moral compass can no longer find North, and we have become inured to the endless erosion of our rights by the plutocracy … yes, it seems very weird that Axelrod would be there, but then again, Axelrod since the beginning of the Obama ascendancy seems to have had full access everywhere except the bathroom
It’s a fascinating report, above all for the way it show that real leaders who wield real power and have to answer for real failures that result in their own people dying, more aften than not behave differently than they thought they would when the had none of the power and responsibility. Nothing surprising about that, of course, but the transformation of Barack Obama is an unusually clear example.
It also shows the futility of using legal tools to resolve moral issues. Lawyers interpret laws according to their needs; when a lawyer becomes President, he’ll find legal justifications for the decisions he feels he has to make, not the other way around.
Which is the way it should be.
theres actually a pretty good scene in the movie “W” where the top brass are in the ‘situation room’ – funny how thats the title of a “news” show, eh?- and Rove, aka turd blossom is there, saying their plans for Iraq are really all about re-election. Colin Powell (in the movie) asks just what the hell Rove is doing there. It was a really dark scene.
Axelrod being there doesnt bother me, I expect sht like that – what bothers me is the blatant hypocrisy from Obama supporters ( I include Weiss here as well, for sure, sorry Phil) – this guy is doing things a Republican president could only dream of, and with hardly a peep from the people who were so “outraged” over comparatively minor things like illegal wiretapping and water boarding – Obama has cats summarily executed DAILY and no one says sht. With a “left” like this, who needs a right? Division? Nah.
Personally approving the list,
hell he should start pulling the trigger as well.
I am sure they could rig him up a drone remote near the oval office.
Someone has created a “Don’t Kill Me List” petition at the White House site. As of today, it has almost 1,900 signatures. I was number 955. Teddy Partridge at firedoglake turned me on to the existence of the list yesterday evening. They’re hoping for 25,000 signatures.
https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions/#!/petition/create-do-not-kill-list/HwqFwRtG