Cheney Opposes Reform of Military Tribunals
by TChris
Having seen little success in its efforts to persuade courts that it is above the law, the Defense Department is now "considering" a plan to obey the Constitution. A draft plan is circulating that would reform the military tribunals the administration uses to prosecute suspected terrorists at Guantánamo Bay.
Those changes include strengthening the rights of defendants, establishing more independent judges to lead the panels and barring confessions obtained by torture, the officials said.
The proposed changes would make the military tribunals more closely resemble traditional court martial proceedings. Advocates of the plan want to avoid further losses in the courts as the administration defends its stubborn refusal to give detainees fair hearings. Will an administration that has so steadfastly opposed due process reconsider its position? Don't count on it: Dick Cheney is standing in the way.
The administration's willingness to restructure the commissions, which have been a central part of its strategy for fighting terrorism, is uncertain. Some officials said they considered the proposals premature because a lawsuit challenging the legality of the commissions is now in a federal appeals court.
In addition, some of the White House aides who supported changes to the commissions have recently moved to new jobs, leaving behind a small but powerful group of officials, led by Vice President Dick Cheney and his staff, who have opposed changing to the commission rules unless forced to do so by the courts, officials said.
"There are a number of folks who would like to make changes," one Pentagon official said of the rules governing the military commissions. But, the official added, "Cheney is still driving a lot of this."
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