KSM, other 9/11 plotters tell Gitmo court they’re ready to confess

posted at 3:55 pm on December 8, 2008 by Allahpundit
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Actually, he’s already confessed — to 9/11 and so much more — but now he’s ready to do it at his trial so that military prosecutors won’t have to dally with proof. He’s begging for martyrdom, in other words. Should we give it to him? We go through this every few months so let’s go through it again. From my last post on the subject:

Here’s a useful rule of thumb to help you decide, in bien pensant fashion, what does and doesn’t constitute a jihadist propaganda victory as the process goes forward. Executing this pig as he so richly deserves is a jihadist propaganda victory because it grants him the martyrdom he seeks, even though we happily run that same risk every time we fire a Predator missile at a safe house in the Pakistani tribal areas. Giving this pig a forum as plum as a trial in which to rant, curse the United States, sing hosannas to Allah, and hold forth on Israel and whatever else is on his mind is not a jihadist propaganda victory because, well, that’s just justice.

Do note: Contrary to popular belief, being locked away in the Great Satan’s prison system also qualifies as martyrdom. Rusty makes that point today vis-a-vis not only KSM but “Blind Sheikh” Omar Abdul Rahman, the “spiritual leader” of the 1993 WTC bombers who’s doing life at Supermax. I’ve given you specific examples in the past of Al Qaeda propaganda name-checking him for inspiration, including one of the 9/11 hijackers in his video will. These turds are already “martyrs”; the only question is whether you want to flush them or not.

Actually, that’s not the only question:

If the judge accepts guilty pleas, the ability of the Obama administration to transfer this case to federal court would be nearly impossible because the legal principle of jeopardy would attach, according to Anthony Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union. That could mean the new administration may have to oversee an execution resulting from a process that many Obama supporters and legal advisers regard as deeply flawed.

“It is absurd to accept a guilty plea from people who were tortured and waterboarded,” said Romero, who is at Guantanamo to observe the proceeding…

A guilty plea, however, could shield the Obama administration from what some legal experts view as potentially hazardous proceedings in federal court, where evidence obtained by torture or coercive interrogation would not be admitted. While legal analysts believe Mohammed and his co-conspirators would be convicted of terrorist offenses, the ability to obtain a capital conviction may have been undermined by the taint of torture.

Why does WaPo assume Obama wants them tried in federal court? The left wants them tried in federal court, but as we’re learning to our great satisfaction every day, what the the left wants and what The One wants are two different things. He specifically said this past summer that we don’t have to try them with all the trimmings, that a military facility and the UCMJ would be good enough. Exit question: Will he accept the inevitable guilty pleas or not?

Update: To illustrate the point I made in the last paragraph, guess which Bush agency head Obama’s now considering holding over. Guess.

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