Sec. of Defense Gates, pictured.
“The Pentagon Monday charged the alleged planner of the Sept. 11 attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, and five others with murder and conspiracy and asked that they be executed if convicted.
“Mohammed, a Pakistani national better known as KSM, has said he planned every aspect of the Sept. 11 attacks.
“But his confession could be problematic if used as evidence because the CIA has admitted it subjected him to “waterboarding” — an interrogation technique of simulated drowning that has been widely criticized as torture.
TheStateOf . . . Terror Trials. I (J) believe that terrorism suspects should receive the same trial as regular criminal defendants, which probably makes me a liberal pinko. If Timothy McVeigh, who killed 160 people, got a full trial, so should Mohammed. I don’t believe the U.S. government should have the power to arrest someone in another country, waterboard them, and then “try” them in secret using worthless statements elicited by waterboarding. It sets a very dangerous precedent that could eventually be used against American citizens. I can’t wait to see whether a President Obama or a President Clinton will repeal these kangaroo courts.
