Freedom™ Torture!

I found this lovely little item over at Sadly, No! and it led to me realize something about our Wingnut™ brethren: they have no sense of irony whatsoever. Not one whit. This must be the only thing that protects them from all the cognitive dissonance. I also think it explains quite a lot about the hatemongers of the religious right, this administration, and a curious organization called the "Center for Individual Freedom." Their latest campaign? Fighting McCain's Anti-Torture bill. I wonder where "human rights violations" fits in their mission statement?

Dear Friend:

"Sen. John McCain... said Sunday he will refuse to yield on his demands that the White House agree with his proposed ban on the use of torture to extract information from suspected terrorists."

...McCain's comments were a slap in the face and they were directed at YOU!

As you know, several weeks ago, McCain snookered his Senate colleagues into approving an amendment to the defense appropriations bill, claiming that the amendment would prohibit torture against terrorists.

"Snookered"...yes; McCain tricked the entire Senate into approving his bill. If it weren't for his nefarious deeds, the Senate would see the light of reason. They would find nothing wrong with discarding the Geneva Conventions and contravening the advice of countless military experts. But McCain led them astray and the Center for Individual Freedom is none too pleased with him:

But McCain's FLAWED amendment does more than ‘prohibit torture.’ It prohibits legitimate interrogation techniques -- interrogation techniques that have foiled at least ten terrorist plots and have saved countless American lives.

When we alerted you to this dangerous McCain amendment -- YOU flooded Members of the Senate with your Blast Faxes -- demanding that they strip it from the bill.

... YOU called McCain on the negative consequences of his amendment.

... American lives are at stake and we've come too far to lose this battle now.

That's why I'm asking you one last time to make your voice heard and demand that our legislators NOT cave in to the grandstanding of John McCain!

I'll grant that McCain is grandstanding, but implying that McCain, by sheer cult of personality, is bending the Senate to his will is a bit of a stretch. Can the Center for Individual Freedom imagine no possible objections to a policy of abuse? I think they need to brush up on the Bill of Rights; luckily, they have it on their home page.

But it looks like they might not have to worry after all: Senator Graham has attached his bill, which heavily modifies the prohibitions of McCain's amendment.

This one bars Guantánamo detainees from going to federal court to enforce the rights that McCain would declare sacrosanct.

A shabby compromise is in the making. Bush removes his veto threat - as long as Graham's amendment remains in the bill - to transform McCain's principles into a hypocritical gesture: Listen up, world, we are against torture at Guantánamo - as long as nobody can complain about it.

Is it wrong to find Wingnut™ wars amusing?