Thursday, June 17, 2004

Issue of Trust: As the prisoner-abuse scandal lurks its way up the chain of command, John Kerry has proposed forming an independent panel to complete the investigation. That's a great idea, but don't expect it to get done.

The scandal may have started as a seemingly few bad apples causing a ruckus. Now evidence indicates that higher authorities sanctioned the abuse. And with the recent revelations that White House lawyers were discussing whether torture could be used against Al Qaeda prisoners, speculation has only grown.

To be sure, the White House memos only indicate a discussion was taking place, not that any torture had been planned. They don't prove any wrongdoing by senior White House officials. But they can't be treated as mere coincidence either. Questions need to be asked, and answers need to be investigated.

However, I'm afraid forming an independent panel will be politically impossible until after the election. After partisan bickering turned the 9/11 panel into a circus, I don't think we can trust anyone to investigate this without trying to exploit it for political gain.

That's a shame, too. While the abuse of prisoners doesn't undermine our just cause in the fight against terrorism, it's a serious blot that cannot be ignored. We have to show that we are above abuse and torture. Unfortunately, until an independent group figures out how this scandal happened, there will be a cloud of suspicion hanging over much of our future endeavors.

P.S. I hate to bring up this issue again, but Kerry has now floated John McCain's name (publicly or internally) for vice president, secretary of defense, and now the head of the independent panel. Kerry seems desperate to somehow make it seem like McCain is involved in his campaign, even when McCain is actively campaigning for Bush.