Thursday, June 23, 2005
Waxman: "A remarkable contrast"
On Tuesday, June 21, leading Congressional Democrats held a press conference regarding Henry Waxman's proposal (H.R.3003) to create an independent commission to investigate detainee abuses at Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo Bay, or other situations arising from the "War on Terror."
In his opening statement, Henry Waxman notes that the House has essentially ignored its responsibility to investigate the causes of the abuse and the responsibility up the chain of command:
I haven't been able to locate a full transcript of all the remarks made during the press conference, nor any print reporting on the following comment by Waxman, which I thought was the strongest of all; so I transcribed the following myself from the CSPAN video (this was part of a response to a press question):
A remarkable contrast, indeed.
Related Links:
CSPAN video of press conference (note this link will most likely only work for about two weeks) - Waxman's "140 vs 5" remark starts at 17:40
Henry Waxman's opening statement as prepared
Nancy Pelosi's opening statement as prepared
Thomas information on H.R.3003, Waxman's Resolution "To establish an independent Commission to investigate detainee abuses."
Committee on Government Reform, Minority Office website (Henry Waxman is Ranking Member on this House Committee)
In his opening statement, Henry Waxman notes that the House has essentially ignored its responsibility to investigate the causes of the abuse and the responsibility up the chain of command:
When the Abu Ghraib photos surfaced, the House held a mere five hours of public hearings. The Senate review was more extensive but stopped far short of assessing individual accountability up the chain of command.
I haven't been able to locate a full transcript of all the remarks made during the press conference, nor any print reporting on the following comment by Waxman, which I thought was the strongest of all; so I transcribed the following myself from the CSPAN video (this was part of a response to a press question):
the Republicans held - and this is a remarkable contrast - they held 140 hours, taking witness testimony, to examine whether President Clinton mishandled his holiday card list. Certainly, after the horrific Abu Ghraib photos surfaced, the House should do more than only 5 hours of public hearings in the Armed Services Committee to investigate this abuse. We need an investigation that people will believe is credible, will know it's doing its job and not participating in a cover-up.
A remarkable contrast, indeed.
Related Links:
CSPAN video of press conference (note this link will most likely only work for about two weeks) - Waxman's "140 vs 5" remark starts at 17:40
Henry Waxman's opening statement as prepared
Nancy Pelosi's opening statement as prepared
Thomas information on H.R.3003, Waxman's Resolution "To establish an independent Commission to investigate detainee abuses."
Committee on Government Reform, Minority Office website (Henry Waxman is Ranking Member on this House Committee)
The Bush Administration's
public statements on Iraq
