Tell Ashcroft, Tenet & Yoo to Show Up

So far, John Conyers has no takers.

The powerful and persistent Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee has invited a number of the leading figures in the Bush torture scandals -- John Ashcroft, George Tenet, John Yoo, Douglas Feith and others -- to appear at a crucial hearing on May 6th.

As of yet, not a single one of them has agreed to show up. In fact, John Yoo and John Ashcroft -- central figures in the Bush strategy for defending torture -- have already refused.

The recent revelations about the Bush administration confirm our worst fears about subversion of the Constitution and betrayals of the rule of law by top government officials -- that they met regularly and approved the CIA’s use of “combined” “enhanced” interrogation techniques.

We must get to the bottom of these allegations, and now we need your help. We’re flooding Chairman Conyers and the whole House Judiciary Committee with “Citizens’ Subpoenas.”

Let Chairman Conyers and the Judiciary Committee know you want them to go all the way by issuing real subpoenas, legally compelling Bush’s torture team to show up.

Stop the Stonewalling: Send your own “Citizens’ Subpoena” now.

The Committee’s May 6th hearing is the right forum for getting clear answers to questions such as what role high government officials played in authorizing torture and bullying through a policy that has disgraced our country. But, we won’t get those answers if the people with the information refuse to show up.

The House Judiciary Committee needs to get to the bottom of which officials were involved in ordering or authorizing torture -- and what laws were broken. Did high government officials violate the War Crimes Act, the Anti-Torture Act, or federal criminal assault laws?

Take Action: Send your own “Citizens’ Subpoena” now and demand that Yoo, Ashcroft and others testify about their role in top-down torture.

Days after President Bush acknowledged that he knew about and approved of high-level White House torture talks, ACLU members generated over 100,000 letters to Congress urging that those who authorized and condoned torture be held accountable.

That’s exactly what John Conyers and the House Judiciary Committee are trying to do. In fact, John Conyers has already threatened to serve subpoenas on Chief of Staff to the Vice President David Addington, former Attorney General John Ashcroft, and Former Deputy Assistant Attorney General John Yoo, if they don't agree to testify. But, standing up the White House isn’t easy. The more Citizens’ Subpoenas we can generate, the more we can strengthen the hand of Chariman Conyers and other defenders of freedom in Congress.

Sincerely,


Caroline Fredrickson, Director
ACLU Washington Legislative Office