Barack Obama gained the presidency with promises to restore America’s fidelity to international law. A lawyer and law professor, he attacked the Bush administration’s legal shortcuts in the “war on terror” and made a pledge to close Guantánamo. Since his inauguration, he has offered lofty rhetoric and reiterated pledges to end the Guantánamo camps, forbid torture and end the process of “extraordinary” renditions involving black sites. But his actions fall remarkably short of his words.
via Obama’s torture hangover | Scott Horton | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk.