The Idiot Speaks

BAD UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT
(From TomPaine.com)

Kudos to Nick Robinson, political editor for the commercial British
television network ITV. At yesterday's press conference following Tony
Blair's address to Congress, Robinson refused to let President Bush's
pre-judgment of the Guantanamo Bay captives go unchallenged.

Asked whether he was concerned about the detainees getting
justice, Bush replied, "No. The only thing I know for certain is that these
are bad people."

Other journalists let this bizarre remark slip by;
Robinson followed up. Would such an unproven assertion "fuel... doubts that
the United States regards [the captives] as innocent until proven
guilty and due a fair, free and open trial?" he asked.

"Well, let me just say these were illegal combatants," Bush
fumbled. "They were picked up off the battlefield aiding and abetting the
Taliban. I'm not trying to try them in front of your cameras or in your
newspaper."

Whether the 32 Afghans and three Pakistanis already released from
Guantanamo without charges are also "bad" was not addressed. For more
on the good, the bad, and the ugly, check out Take on the News -- our
new blog!


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