Tuesday, August 16, 2022

Merrick Garland is not up for the job

Each day, it becomes more and move obvious that Attorney General Merrick Garland is not up to the job.  Jonathan Turley notes:

When Garland has faced clear demands for independent action, he has folded. For example, Garland has refused to appoint a special counsel in the investigation of Hunter Biden. But there is no way to investigate Hunter Biden without running over continual references to President Biden.

By refusing a special counsel, Garland has removed the president’s greatest threat. Unlike the U.S. Attorney investigating Hunter Biden, a special counsel would be expected to publish a report that would detail the scope of the Biden family’s alleged influence peddling and foreign contacts.

Likewise, the Justice Department is conducting a grand jury investigation that is aggressively pursuing Trump associates and Republican figures, including seizing the telephones of members of Congress. That investigation has bearing on the integrity and the status of Biden’s potential opponent in 2024.

The investigation also has triggered concerns over the party in power investigating the opposing political party. It is breathtaking that Garland would see no need for an independent or special counsel given this country’s continued deep divisions and mistrust.

 

The first step that needs to be taken is a special counsel appointed to investigate Hunter Biden's business dealings.

 

This is C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" for today:

 

Tuesday, August 16, 2022.  Joe Biden continues to persecute Julian Assange, attorneys and journalists sue the CIA, the political stalemate continues in Iraq and much more.


Starting with Julian Assange who US President Joe Biden continues to persecute for the 'crime' of truth telling.  Joe may think he's destroying Julian but what Joe's destroying is democracy, freedom of the press and his own historical legacy.  The world is watching.  Patrick Boyan (PRESSENZA) reports:

What is it like to try to live what Julian Assange is living, incarcerated as he is in London’s Belmarsh prison since April 11, 2019 for having had the audacity to make public the secret war crimes, environmental crimes and human rights crimes of the United States and the United Kingdom? A young woman from Como has decided to reenact Assange’s dramatic condition – albeit in the open air and only for a limited time – with a “street installation” in a central square of the Northern Italian town of Como. She hopes that passersbys will be led to put themselves into Julian’s shoes and thus better comprehend the conditions under which he is trying to survive.

It is now well over 1,220 days, in fact, that Assange has been imprisoned, in solitary confinement, in a cell that measures three meters by two (roughly 7 feet by 10 feet),

  • with only one hour of air time,
  • with only two visits per month, of 15 minutes each,
  • with only one phone call of just a few minutes per month, and
  • with another 175 years of prison time awaiting him in the United States!

All this without there ever having been a conviction against him (except for a minor misdemeanor, no longer applicable). An incarceration which is therefore absolutely arbitrary – just like in the worst authoritarian regimes from which the very UK and US claim to distance themselves but, in this case, don’t.

It is a legal monstrosity that cries out for vengeance. And to cry out her rage, the young woman from Como has decided to enact in public what it means to be in a cell like Julian’s.

Every Saturday afternoon for the next eight months, Lorena Corrias will draw on the pavement of Piazza Verdi, in front of Como’s Social Theatre, the outline of a 7X10 foot cell – with a poster of Assange covering a space the size of the Belmarsh cot – and will sit there from 4 to 6 p.m. (during summer), getting up only to distribute leaflets to passersby. The municipality has allowed her to occupy the 64 square feet of city property until March 25, 2023. She began enacting her protest on August 6, wearing for the occasion an orange jumpsuit reminiscent of that worn by prisoners in Guantanamo. (Belmarsh prison is, in fact, often called “the British Guantanamo”.)


The world is watching, Joe.  At France's LE MONDE, Nils Melzer writes:


As Special Rapporteur on Torture, I was mandated by the UN Human Rights Council to monitor compliance with the global prohibitions on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatments and punishments, investigate alleged violations of these prohibitions and transmit questions and recommendations to the states concerned with the aim of clarifying individual cases. When I investigated Julian Assange’s case, I found irrefutable evidence of political persecution and arbitrary judicial decisions, as well as deliberate torture and ill-treatment. Yet the states responsible (the US, UK, Sweden and Ecuador) refused to cooperate with me in carrying out the investigative procedure required under international law.

The Assange case is the story of a man persecuted and mistreated for revealing the sordid secrets of the powerful, in particular, war crimes, torture and corruption. It’s a story of deliberately arbitrary judicial decisions made by Western democracies eager to claim exemplary human rights records. It’s a story of deliberate collusion by intelligence services without the knowledge of national parliaments and the public. And it’s a story of manipulated and manipulative reporting by the mainstream media to deliberately isolate, demonise and destroy an individual.


Human rights lawyer Stella Assange — the wife of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange — says her husband’s ongoing extradition battle has set a dangerous precedent for press freedom worldwide.

Assange is wanted in the United States on 18 criminal charges, including espionage, for publishing classified documents that detailed war crimes. If he is extradited, he could be sentenced to up to 175 years in prison.

“This is the most dangerous attack on press freedom globally because it is the United States that is going after a foreign journalist working abroad, publishing abroad,” Assange’s wife told DW’s Birgit Maas.



As most international legal luminaries had predicted, the British government succumbed to pressure from the US and is fast-tracking the process of deporting Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, to that country to face trial on the serious charges of espionage. British Home Secretary Priti Patel, notorious for her tough stance on immigration, gave the green light for his deportation.

The Supreme Court of the UK ruled in February that Assange could not appeal the decision of lower courts in his extradition case. In April, a magistrates’ court ordered Assange’s extradition under laws relating to the US’ Espionage Act.

Under British laws, Assange had a month’s time to appeal to the Home Secretary against the Supreme Court’s ruling.. In a statement in mid June rejecting the appeal, the British Home Office claimed that the UK could comply with the US government’s long-standing extradition demand because “the UK courts” have come to the conclusion that it would not be “oppressive, unjust or an abuse of power to extradite Mr Assange”. It went on to say that the courts did not find that extradition “would be incompatible with his human rights, including his right to a fair trial and to the freedom of expression, and that whilst in the US he will be treated appropriately, including in relation to his health”


All around the world, Joe, people are watching.  Arturo Sanchez Jimenez (NATION WORLD) reports:

Edith Cabrera of the group “#24F Julian Assange Life and Liberty Coalition” said in an interview that supporters of Assange hope extradition will not take place despite the British government’s decision in June to extradite the Australian journalist.

The group “#24F Julian Assange Life and Freedom Coalition” held a protest in Mexico City this Saturday in front of the embassies of the United Kingdom and the United States to demand Assange’s release as well as his non-extradition.


The world's watching as Joe persecutes and terrorizes and acts like the despotic ruler of some country on the USA's hit list.  They're seeing some persecuted for telling the truth.  They're seeing the full weight of the US government come down on a single person.  It's not a good look for Joe Biden.


The AssangeDAO’s successful fundraising campaign that gathered $53 million to win a bid on Pak x Julian Assange’s “Clock” NFT will now serve its greater purpose. These donations to support Julian Assange’s fight for freedom will now be used as a weapon to hit back at the corrupt legal system in the US.

Gabriel Shipton, brother of Julian Assange, also spoke up to confirm the move, saying, “Julian will be able to bring more offensive legal proceedings using these funds in different territories where the irregularities and government corruption have been.” The statement has been tweeted via AssangeDAO.

Note that the raised capital of $53 million was used to win the “Clock NFT Auction”. The amount was then transferred to the non-profit Wau Holland Stiftung Foundation, dedicated to supporting Julian Assange in his legal battle.

In April, Wau Holland transferred $1.8 million to the Australian Assange Campaign to support them continue their work defending Julian Assange and his human rights. 


And Monday, an important press conference took place, moderated by attorney Heidi Boghosian (a host of WBAI's LAW AND DISORDER).



0:00 Introduction - Heidi Boghosian 1:15 Richard Roth, attorney representing plaintiffs 3:00 Robert Boyle, attorney/consultant in the lawsuit 5:50 Margaret Ratner-Kunstler, plaintiff (attorney) 7:15 Deborah Hrbek, plaintiff (attorney) 9:20 John Goetz, plaintiff (journalist) 11:25 Nathan Fuller, director of Assange Defense Committee 13:30 Questions From Journalists 13:55 Joshua Rozenberg (UK) 16:48 Jack Gillum, Bloomberg 19:20 Margaret Kimberley, Black Agenda Report 20:51 Joe Lauria, Consortium News 23:30 Mary Kostakidis (Australia) 29:40 Mohamed Elmaazi (UK) 33:55 Kanishka Singh, Reuters 35:07 Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly 36:35 Matthew Russell Lee, Inner City Press 38:29 Chip Gibbons, Jacobin 41:00 Chat Questions From Journalists 48:00 Kelley Lane (US) 49:40 Shaun Waterman, Newsweek 53:40 Remaining Questions


Laura Tiernan (WSWS) reports on the press conference above:

Lawyers and journalists who visited WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London are suing the CIA and its former Director Mike Pompeo for violations of their Fourth Amendment rights against warrantless search and seizure of their property, including privileged client-attorney information during visits to the embassy.

Attorneys Margaret Ratner Kunstler and Deborah Hrbek, and journalists John Goetz and Charles Glass are seeking monetary and injunctive relief against the CIA, Pompeo, Spanish security firm UC Global and its owner David Morales. All four plaintiffs are US citizens who visited Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy between January 2017 and March 2018.

Their lawsuit was filed Monday morning in the Southern District of New York and was announced at a press conference livestreamed shortly after.

Richard Roth, whose law firm filed suit, said his clients had learned that when they visited Assange at the embassy their equipment was “taken, imaged and in addition their conversations were recorded by a company at the direction of Mike Pompeo of the CIA.

“It is somewhat startling in light of the Fourth Amendment protection we have in the Constitution, that the federal government would actually go ahead and take this confidential information, some of which is attorney-client privileged, some which of which was [from] journalists and even doctors that visited Mr Assange.”

Roth said the CIA’s “nefarious activities” had violated his clients’ rights and they were seeking damages, including “the return of all this information which was improperly gathered during the visits to Mr Assange.”

Robert Boyle, a New York civil rights and constitutional law attorney who is consulting on the case, explained its significance for the democratic rights of US citizens, “The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution protects US citizens from being subjected to unreasonable searches and seizures. That fundamental principle applies to searches and seizures directed toward US citizens by US law enforcement anywhere in the world.

“These Fourth Amendment protections were blatantly violated. The contents of the plaintiffs’ digital devices were secretly copied by security personnel recruited by the CIA and then that information was turned over to the CIA. This was part of an intentional plan.”

The Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution was introduced to Congress by James Madison in 1789 and was ratified in 1791. 



The suit names the CIA, former CIA director and former US secretary of state Pompeo, and the security firm Undercover Global as defendants.

The suit alleges Undercover Global, which had a security contract with the embassy, swept information on their electronic devices, including communications with Assange, and provided it to the CIA.

In addition it placed microphones around the embassy and sent recordings, as well as footage from security cameras, to the CIA, the suit alleges.

This, the attorneys claim, violated privacy protections for US citizens.


REUTERS quotes Richard Roth explaining, "The United States Constitution shields American citizens from U.S. government overreach even when the activities take place in a foreign embassy in a foreign country."  And THE RIVER CITIES' READER adds,  "The lawsuit was filed in the Southern District of New York this morning and can be found here."

 

We'll note this Tweet:

"I was the CIA director. We lied, we cheated, we stole."—Mike Pompeo. The CIA and the US govt have indeed lied, cheated and stolen at every step along the way of their persecution and prosecution of Julian Assange. The case must be dismissed. #DropTheCharges #FreeAssangeNOW
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The world is watching, Joe Biden.  And the world knows Julian didn't commit War Crimes, he exposed them.  The US government committed the War Crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan.


Turning to Iraq . . . 

Sadr's Minster calls Noori Al-Maliki, Qais Al-khazali and Ammar Al-Hakim the "Fateful/Evil Trinity". 🔥 #Iraq



Yes, the political stalemate continues.  Elections were held October 10th.  The country has still not named a new president or prime minister.  On the presidency, the stumbling block remains that both the PUK and KDP claim they should get to select the nominee -- those are the two most powerful political parties in the KRG and, by custom, the presidency goes to a Kurd.  RUDAW notes:

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) on Monday invited rival Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) to unite their efforts and present a unified “national package” in the face of the political crisis that Iraq is currently struggling with.

The PUK sent out a congratulatory message to the KDP on the anniversary of its establishment, saying they hope the occasion provides an opportunity to strengthen the relations between the two parties in order to confront the obstacles they have encountered in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq through "mutual understanding."

The PUK stated that they “hope” Kurdish political parties can present a united stance to address the outstanding political issues and movements, especially in Iraq, inviting the parties to confront the current political impasse in Iraq in a unified “national and Kurdistani package.”



As Americans know well, when angry protesters forcibly occupy the national legislature, violence is all too possible. Yet in Iraq, whose democracy was planted by the 2003 U.S. invasion, a similar protest in Baghdad over recent weeks has been relatively peaceful. One reason may be the quiet influence of the country’s most respected religious leader, top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.

For 10 months, Iraqi politics has been in a tense stalemate following an inconclusive parliamentary election. No party won enough votes to form a government. The standoff – between two dominant alliances representing the country’s majority Shiites – has been fought behind the scenes as well as in dueling protests in the legislative building and the streets. Fears of a civil war are high with a potential to disrupt the Middle East.

In recent days, Mr. Sistani reportedly met with the leader of one political bloc, firebrand Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. His bloc, which rejects meddling by Iran, won the most seats in the election. The meeting fits Mr. Sistani’s long insistence that Iraqis act responsibly as a nation to avoid the “abyss of chaos and political obstruction.”

Unlike top Muslim clerics in neighboring Iran, Mr. Sistani believes Islam calls for clerics to largely stay away from ruling a country. He seeks a strong Iraqi identity rooted in democratic values that bind the country’s religious diversity. Yet in times of crisis, the still-divided Iraqis look to him for what he calls “caretaking” and “guidance.”

As in the past, he again walks a fine line between mosque and state. In many ways, though, he speaks for Iraqi youth. Their mass protests in 2019 altered the political landscape with demands for a government based on the common good, not the current power-sharing system that divvies up national resources by sects and ethnicity – with a high dose of corruption.


Those are examples, from RUDAW and CSM, of two meet-ups taking place.  Amr Salem (IRAQI NEWS) notes a third:

The Special Representative for the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, discussed on Monday the legal issues related to the political impasse in the country with the President of the Supreme Judicial Council, Faiq Zeidan, according to a press statement issued by the Supreme Judicial Council.

The statement mentioned that Plasschaert and Zeidan, during their meeting in the headquarters of the Supreme Judicial Council in Baghdad, talked about the role of the Iraqi judiciary in addressing the legal problems related to the political crisis in Iraq.

The Supreme Judicial Council announced on Sunday that it does not have the authority to dissolve the Iraqi parliament. According to the principle of separation between the three legislative, executive and judicial powers in the Iraqi constitution, the Supreme Judicial Council is not authorized to interfere in the matters of the legislative or executive authorities.  



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