My guess is that he's trying to get a lot of stuff moving that requires bipartisan support, and knows that immediately going after members of the last administration would further polarize and galvanize the two parties. Meanwhile, Cheney is incriminating himself in the media more and more, so what's the harm of letting tricky Dick run his mouth for a while.

To me, this business about "indefinite detention" only means that they won't put hard dead-lines on releasing detainees. They've already said that they will be giving each individual a fair hearing, but I'm sure they just don't know how long that would take.

It's great how quick you guys are to say "Fuck you, Obama" when he's only been in office for 6 months. Yeah, he hasn't solved all the world's problems yet. What a despicable man!

Tags for this video have been changed from 'Indefinite, Detention, obama' to 'Indefinite, prolonged, Detention, obama, minority report' - edited by kronosposeidon

yeah, indefinite detention for detainees that the Bush administration captured. This only applies to current prisoners.

I'm awfully happy I did, too. I'm happy you've come to see Rachel as truthful, and not fatally biased, by the way.

Personally I think she's jumping the gun a bit, but it's good to know "the left" isn't going to be like the Republicans and defend everything their leader does.

If you watched the whole Obama speech, you can tell he's got concerns about the legal framework for holding these people. The issue is that the torture program left us with people we know are threats, but the evidence of that is tainted by the methods used to collect it. He could of course argue that the evidence gained via torture should be legally admissible in some way, but that leads us to the dark side.

So does indefinite detention without trial though, but that's what they've had for 8 years, and I think it's probably tolerable to let that continue while we settle the legal and political struggles over what to do with them.

Personally I say giving them their fair day in court, letting them get acquitted, and then keeping tabs on them once released is the right way to go -- collect new evidence, or just plain do the whole ugly war thing and kill them on the field of battle. I'm sure that's not a popular plan, but I suspect Obama wouldn't put up a massive fight if the legal tussle worked out that way.

Much as I wish Obama used all the Bushian "I'm the decider" tactics to undo all of Bush's messes, I'm okay with a return to the Presidency having limits on what it can do by executive fiat.

In reply to this comment by blankfist:
You know, I hate to be the person to say I told you so, but... I told you so. And you even campaigned for that cretin.

http://www.videosift.com/video/Rachel-Maddow-Obama-Advocates-Indefinite-Detention

You know, I hate to be the person to say I told you so, but... I told you so. And you even campaigned for that cretin.

http://www.videosift.com/video/Rachel-Maddow-Obama-Advocates-Indefinite-Detention

"...the best President of my lfietime".

http://www.videosift.com/video/Rachel-Maddow-Obama-Advocates-Indefinite-Detention

Your video, Rachel Maddow - Obama Advocates Indefinite Detention?, has made it into the Top 15 New Videos listing. Congratulations on your achievement. For your contribution you have been awarded 1 Power Point.

>> ^eric3579:
My kind of president. promote
By the way, Happy Birthday Ornthoron! Go buy yourself something nice


Is this? That video should be promoted.

Happy birthday as well, Ornth.

^ Tell it to the thousands of soldiers who died in Iraq.

Tell it to their families.

Tell it to the millions losing their houses, and the thousands losing their jobs.

Tell it to the people whose phones are being tapped, and whose government sees indefinite detention without trial and torture as justifiable tools of the trade.

But hey, it's just whining to say that just because Democrats got more votes they should've won the presidency.

Clearly it worked out just fine in the end, right?

He remembers trashing the Constitution. He remember trashing Habeas Corpus and indefinite detention. He remembers approving torture and trashing the Geneva Convention.

(But now Congress seems pissed... A little too late)