I’m more heartened by the domestic policies I hope to see from him. Unlike NZ the US is embarking upon a “Green New Deal” and I think that’s a critical step in the right direction. I also have high hopes that Obama will finally do something about US health care – which is an utter embarrassment for a country of that wealth.

Remember, the USA has had a pretty damn conservative government since at least 1980. What may seem to be pretty extreme right-wing policies to us (no government funded healthcare) are seen as normal there. It sucks, but it’s the case. I believe that over time Obama will make a significant change to that situation, however it will take him 8 years to do that. If he goes too extreme then he’ll get kicked out in 2012 and we’ll end up with a bloody Republican president again! I would expect Obama to be a little more extreme in the changes he makes if he can win the 2012 election and if there’s a Democrat dominated congress throughout that time.

I think in some ways Obama’s biggest legacy will be the changed position the USA has on climate change talks. Something might happen now.

So, what should Obama do about all this? And what he will do? Bush, Cheney and the other leading officials who ordered torture or issued legal opinions supporting it ought to be investigated and if found legally liable, indicted, tried, and, if convicted, punished. But clearly, that’s not going to happen. Obama is not prepared to divide the country still further and take important time and energy away from the effort to end the Bush Depression and establish badly-needed health, energy and education policies, among others. (Maybe Obama should release or pardon the few small fry torturers now being punished since the big fish will get away)

Congress or somebody else may appoint a commission or two to investigate–but to no prosecutorial end. And, as I’ve written before, no way will Obama permit any Bush officials to be prosecuted abroad. Remember, even the lowliest U.S. private soldier serving abroad is protected by status of forces agreements from being punished by a host country for carrying out official duties. And, however illegal or immoral, torture was an official duty ordered by Bush.

The most likely outcome of this whole business will be that nobody will be punished (I don’t even think the Senate will try for, much less accomplish, the simplest punitive step, a two-thirds vote to remove Judge Bybee from office). And the failure to punish those responsible for torture will become, for those of us on the left, the equivalent of right-wing complaints against abortion, stem cell research and gay marriage. There will continue to be much fuss, but no satisfaction. I hope I’m wrong.

Re your opening paragraph — did Johnson borrow that saying (in effect) from FDR.?

To the blogger/standard — can I respectfully request that at some point when you play a similar exercize please substitute former Senator Phil Gramm for G.W. Bush – I’d be interested to know whether folks make any comparative with the middle pic above.. loosely this would be about mentors.. in the wider sense of events and happenings that career paths are prone to take..

“There is a story about Pres Johnson and the civil rights movement. He was meeting with activists, and they were making their case. At the end of it he said words to the effect of, yes, I agree with you, now go make me do it.”

From your link:

“One transition source, who asked not to be identified discussing sensitive matters, said that Attorney General-designate Eric Holder may be more inclined than other Obama aides to press the matter.”

Eric Holder is the only one that matters. Not Obama, and not the chief of staff, who also was on the record against prosecutions. I don’t really want to keep going over this. The reason Obama can’t be the one to start saying ‘prosecute prosecute’ is that he is the president. It’s not his job, just like it wasn’t Bush’s job to be declaring people terrorists without trials. For him to be doing that would be part of the problem.

It would also make the dynamic immediately politicised in an unhelpful way. The story would become Obama v Bush, Dem v GOP. Rather than The Law v Criminals. It makes the battlefield better for the criminals if that was what happened.

By saying words to the effect that “I have no personal interest in a fight about this, here is what happened” and letting the process go forward, it helps in making it a legal fight rather than a political one. If he really was against prosecutions, why didn’t he fight to avoid releasing the memo’s? He had a better chance in that case than the one he fought, (and lost, coincidence?) about other state secrets. Also bear in mind that the courts may have redacted much more of the memo’s than Obama did, even if they ruled to release them.

I’m well aware of what has been said by who. I’m also aware of what actions have been taken, and I’m just reserving judgment as the process plays out. I don’t think that is unreasonable.

In any case, I doubt we are convincing each other, but that’s my position at the moment. Essentially reserved, pending further actions.

Pascal – I think it is plainly obvious that Obama didn’t want to prosecute. he said as much himself repeatedly. So we can say the equivocating is not tactical it is genuine. He was pressured into his current position. See this newsweek article linked to from the Obama fan club Huffington post. So once again it disgusts me that he wanted to let these people get away with it.

And change is absolutely necessary. Some time ago I read a wingnut article somewhere comparing Obama to Gorbachev. Oddly enough, the comparison was valid, although the talking points and conclusions made weren’t. Obama’s problem is that, just like Gorbachev, he has become the leader of a country that is bankrupt, both metaphorically and literally.

Personally, having a soft spot for capitalism, I’m hoping that Obama succeeds with the USA where Gorbachev very narrowly failed with the USSR. But then, even Gorbachev had some success: that so many countries in Eastern Europe and the former USSR are at least comparatively free today is testament to his hard work.