It’s all about Yoo

Opinion writers rarely disclose their particular political or ideological biases prior to sharing their sage opinions with us peasant readers. At best, we get a 25-word summary at the bottom of the op-ed that highlights the writer’s credentials and associations – mostly august and/or obscure. So, check me out on this, please.

Isn’t John Yoo, writer of Wednesday’s opinion piece disparaging Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan, the same John Yoo who worked for the Justice Department under the George W. Bush administration? Isn’t he the same John Yoo whose expansive views on presidential authority provided legal cover for that administration so they could employ “enhanced interrogation techniques,” like waterboarding and other torture techniques, at Guantanamo? The same John Yoo who wrote memos suggesting the president didn’t need to worry about the War Crimes Act and the Geneva Conventions because they didn’t apply to the executive? The same John Yoo who backed the Bush administration’s warrantless wiretapping program?

Just checking.

Jet Tilley

Spokane