Despite Celebrated Orders Closing Gitmo and Banning Torture, Has Obama Kept Rendition Intact?

On Wednesday a British High Court ruled Wednesday that evidence of British resident Binyam Mohamed’s extraordinary rendition and torture at Guantanamo Bay had to remain secret because the Bush administration had threatened it would stop intelligence sharing with the UK if the evidence is disclosed.

The court opinion adds that the position of the United States “remains the same, even after the making of the Executive Orders by President Obama on 22 January 2009.” The Los Angeles Times also reported Sunday that the Obama administration has decided not to end the controversial policy of rendition, which gives the CIA authority to abduct anyone throughout the world and secretly transfer them to another country.

The report has sparked a number of debates. Scott Horton, the legal affairs contributor to Harper’s magazine, wrote in his Harper’s blog, No Comment, that the Los Angeles Times “just got punked.” He points to the difference between the renditions program in place since the George H W Bush administration and the extraordinary renditions program introduced after September 11th, 2001 and shut down by Obama’s executive order.

Today we host a discussion on rendition and the future of counter-terrorism efforts under President Obama. Scott Horton joins me here in the firehouse studio and we’re also joined by Michael Ratner, President of the Center for Constitutional Rights.

Scott Horton, New York attorney specializing in international law and human rights. He is also a legal affairs contributor to Harper’s magazine, where he writes the blog “No Comment.”

Michael Ratner, President of the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights.