Sunday Roundup (POLITICS)
This week, the Senate released its report on America's use of torture after 9/11. The revelations were appalling: a detainee being chained naked to the floor and dying of exposure, another forced to stand on broken legs, more widespread use of waterboarding than previously known, and forced "rectal hydration" (in other contexts, known as rape). And not only did the CIA mislead Congress, but its claims -- repeated this week -- about the program's effectiveness were also unsupported by the evidence. It was a small step in accounting for one of the most shameful episodes in U.S. history. But it's not enough to, as the president did, simply say we won't do it again. The larger question is: Why aren't the program's architects being prosecuted? The methods used, the president said, are "inconsistent with our values as a nation." And so is placing some people above the law for political expediency. Thankfully, there is no statute of limitations on torture.