The ACLU Confronts the Military

The American Civil Liberties Union confronts the military. That is the subject of this evening's "Talking Points Memo."

The ACLU sued the Pentagon for information about the military abusing prisoners and got reports of 10 separate incidents. The ACLU then released those reports to the press saying, "This kind of widespread abuse could not have taken place without leadership failure of the highest order."

The ACLU also says that the Bush administration is "continuing to commit human rights abuses both at home and abroad." Now the incidents involve 24 Marines who allegedly brutalized captured Iraqis. Eleven have already been court-martialed and convicted. Three have received lesser punishments, six found innocent and four cases are pending.

So what the ACLU uncovered in the documents was already being dealt with by the government. To be fair, we do have a right to know about this and might not have but for the Freedom of Information (search) request.

But there is no doubt in the mind of "Talking Points" that the ACLU's primary intent was not information flow, but an effort to smear the military and the Bush administration.

Abuse happens in every war. That's a fact. Clear thinking Americans can't condone it, but in this case, the military seems to be doing its job. The abusers are being held accountable.

But here's something you might not know. Guess who is the ACLU's new best friend? Hey, George Soros (search), this bud's for you. The radical billionaire has given close to $4 million to the ACLU recently.—That'll buy a lot of stuff.

So there's no question that the ACLU has changed its mission from protecting the expression rights of Americans to attacking traditional and conservative enterprises. They can point to defending the Skoke Nazis all they want, but the Soros money speaks louder than any nutty Nazi.

The executive director of the ACLU is a man named Anthony Romero, who is afraid to answer the growing questions about how radical his organization has become. It is long past time for Americans to know just what Romero - Soros and their acolytes are up to. They hide behind the noble goal of freedom, while doing everything possible to batter it.

Attacking Christianity, embarrassing the military, accusing the elected government of abuse and promoting a radical agenda are not hallmarks of a benign operation. I'm on record as saying the ACLU is the most dangerous organization in the country. And I stand behind that analysis.

And that's "The Memo."

The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day

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