April 22, 2016: The World Meets America Report spoke to Dr. Rebecca Gordon about her new book American Nuremberg: The Officials Who Should Stand Trial for Post 9/11 War Crimes, which examines the legal ways and means of bringing members of the George W. Bush Administration to justice for crimes committed since the onset of the War on Terror. After offering a brief overview of how her career led her to write a book about prosecuting US officials for war and human rights crimes, Dr. Gordon discussed the issues of torture, Donald Trump and the 2016 presidential race, Trump’s odd stand on the Iraq War and the Bush White House, whether Hillary Clinton or Trump are capable of standing up to the national security state and other special interests that surround the Oval Office.
Dr. Gordon and host William Kern also discuss:
— Since 9-11, the United States has seen a fundamental break from its past, requiring dramatic action to bring the country back under the rule of law
–The mainstream media, in concert with the state, fans the flames of public fear in order to keep the America people in a constant state of alarm
— While Bush insisted that the United States was embarking on a “war” on terror, his administration’s insistence that combatants captured in that “war” do not qualify for Geneva Convention protection for captured troops is a legal absurdity and an affront to American justice
— Legislation now being considered by Congress – JASTA, or the Justice Against the Sponsors of Terrorism Act, which would allow 9-11 families to sue Saudi Arabia for damages, may also help bring civil suits against Bush Administration officials
— While the crimes committed by the Bush Administration were grave and are deserving of prosecution, particularly in a country that considers itself a beacon of human rights, Dr. Gordon pointed out that they in no way rose to the level of those committed by the Nazis which were prosecuted at Nuremberg
— Under Federal law, torture is NOT explicitly prohibited within the United States, which is why “enhanced interrogation techniques” are supposedly “legal” in Guantanamo!
— It was Joseph Stalin, and not FDR or Winston Churchill, who demanded Nazi leaders be put on trial. In fact, Churchill and FDR favored mass extrajudicial executions
— While Dr. Gordon doubts that the Bush White House knew or was part of planning the 9-11 attacks, she points out that the moment they occurred, administration officials moved to take advantage of the situation to restore pre-Nixon levels levels of untrammeled presidential power
— Because of public outrage across the political spectrum, 2016 election offers hope of reforming America’s political system
— Unless significant reform occurs, a danger exists that the 2020 presidential race could be even more turbulent than the 2016 race
— Dr. Gordon fears greater interracial violence in the near-term due to growing white frustration over a perceived loss of influence and uncertainty about the future.
