Bush stance on torture is rejected

Charlie Savage Boston Globe Jan. 5, 2006 12:00 AM

WASHINGTON - Three key Republican senators Wednesday condemned President Bush's assertion that his powers as commander in chief give him the authority to bypass a new law restricting the use of torture when interrogating detainees.

John Warner, a Virginia Republican who is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., issued a joint statement rejecting Bush's assertion that he can waive the restrictions on the use of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment against detainees to protect national security.

"We believe the president understands Congress' intent in passing, by very large majorities, legislation governing the treatment of detainees," the senators said. "The Congress declined when asked by administration officials to include a presidential waiver of the restrictions included in our legislation. Our committee intends through strict oversight to monitor the administration's implementation of the new law."

Separately, the third primary sponsor of the detainee-treatment law, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told the Globe in a phone interview that he agreed with everything McCain and Warner said "and would go a little bit further."

"I do not believe that any political figure in the country has the ability to set aside any ... law of armed conflict that we have adopted or treaties that we have ratified," Graham said. "If we go down that road, it will cause great problems for our troops in future conflicts because nothing is to prevent other nations' leaders from doing the same."

On Friday, in signing the ban on torture, Bush issued a "signing statement," saying he would interpret the restrictions in the context of his broader constitutional powers as commander in chief. A "signing statement" is an official document in which a president lays out his interpretation of a new law.

David Golove, a New York University law professor who specializes in executive-power issues, said the senators' statements "mean that the battle lines are drawn" for an escalating fight over the balance of power between the two branches of government.