As many of you know, if you peruse the diaries over at DKos, there has been a bit of sturm und drang over the Obama administration and State Department intervening to get the War Crimes trial in Spain of Bush, Cheney et al derailed. Well it finally jumped the shark when more than a few suggested that maybe Obama should be impeached over this.
So here is my diary on the subject. I thought it might be of some interest to Moosers.
My father-in-law is a retired career diplomat. He co-wrote the last tripartite treaty for Berlin. His last job at State before retiring was Inspector General. This as high as you can go without a Presidential appointment. Once leaving State he went to the UN to work with then Secretary General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar on Peace Keeping (A term he coined and process he help develop) and other issues. He also lectured at Yale for a number of years on foreign policy. Ok that’s the back ground on my info and the credentials of the person giving it to me. Also he is a committed liberal Democrat.
When Spain first started down this road against Bush Cheney et al I asked him what the chances of this really happening. He was brief and to the point. NONE
Any administration would move heaven and earth to avoid having a former President, VP and senior officials put on trial in a foreign country.
Why? Primarily we do not recognize Spain’s jurisdiction to try US officials. Also it would set up a terrible precedent that any country could make a claim against a former President and we would do nothing about it.
Side note: We also have never signed the International Criminal Courts Treaty and in fact have signed numerous bilateral treaties with countries who have signed on to the International Criminal Court that they will not turn over US officials or soldiers to the International Criminal Court.
A scenario where Bush and Cheney would have been turned over.
Now had we signed the International Criminal Courts Treaty and they had brought the charges, not Spain, we would be obligated, not ifs ands or buts to turn over who ever was named in the charges.
FYI Clinton did sign the International Criminal Court Treaty, but never sent it to the Senate for ratification because he knew it would not pass. Bush, on shaking legal grounds, had Clinton’s signature rescinded. And if Obama signed the treaty again you can be sure it would never get ratified by the Senate
Now you can say it isn’t right and that’s fine. That doesn’t change the fact that it could have been any other President and the same result would have happened.
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