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by thrulookingglass » Fri Dec 14, 2018 11:34 am
by conniption » Fri Jan 18, 2019 7:40 pm
daily caller
POWELL: Manafort’s Torture Shows The Character Of Mueller’s Goon Squad
01/09/2019
Sidney Powell | Former Federal Prosecutor
It’s happening in front of our eyes. It’s happened to many people, yet little to nothing has been said about it. It’s standard operating procedure for prosecutors the likes of Robert Mueller and Andrew Weissmann, and federal judges allow or facilitate it.
Paul Manafort is being tortured and killed — slowly and painfully — in solitary confinement because of Robert Mueller and Judge Amy Berman Jackson. He has been in solitary for almost eight months because he attempted to contact someone to serve as a witness for his defense. As 9/11 hero Bernard Kerik wrote in his book From Jailer to Jailed, Paul Manafort is “dying with his eyes open” little by little every day.
There should be a national public outcry over the conditions of his confinement. The ACLU is opposed to solitary confinement as are many other organizations, yet for Paul Manafort, there is silence.
Worse, there but for the grace of God go you — if you become a target of these ruthless prosecutors — regardless of whether you have done anything wrong.
When a witness or defendant from whom prosecutors want “cooperation” does not do as they demand, they put him in solitary confinement. And it works. It literally breaks people.
Experts confirm that solitary confinement is torture — abject torture for most people. It can drive a sane person completely insane within twenty-four hours. People will say or do anything to get out of it. It plays tricks with the mind. Like many other forms of torture, “information” produced as a result of solitary confinement has very little reliability.
As Kerik wrote, “deprivation of freedom — intensified by solitary confinement — makes you say and do and think things that you would never otherwise say or do or think.”
Solitary does have a place in our prison system, but only for those people who are simply too dangerous to be placed around others at all. However, the torture of solitary confinement should never be used as it is now to break people to prosecutors’ will — to torture them until they will say or do anything to get out.
Solitary is also called the “hole.” It’s a small space, barely large enough to stand, with a slit for light, to which prisons are confined/caged for 23 hours a day.
It is no place for people like the young Russian woman Maria Butina, whom prosecutors recently accused of acting as an unregistered foreign agent. Ms. Butinapleaded guiltyto a felony during her second round of solitary confinement. The young woman was known to be claustrophobic.
Kerik explained that pretrial inmates can easily be manipulated into confessions, and/or pleading guilty with promises or suggestion of being released from the box. A prisoner is willing to do anything to be freed from the isolation that is mentally and emotionally breaking her down every minute she’s there.
Likewise, solitary is torture for Paul Manafort, and was for former 9/11 Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, and young former Enron Treasure Ben Glisan — along with countless other prisoners. Only Kerik, a strong, highly trained, and decorated police officer, survived it without caving to the prosecutors’ demands.
The abusive use of solitary confinement to torture prisoners — especially “high value” political prisoners — has become one of the most egregious prosecutorial abuses of our time. Prosecutors will claim they have nothing to do with it — that it’s all Bureau of Prisons, but that is a lie.
As I document in my book, when the young former Enron treasurer, Ben Glisan, pleaded guilty to a felony but refused to “cooperate” with Andrew Weissmann — then prosecutor on the infamous Enron Task Force — Glisan voluntarily reported to prison only to find himself immediately put into the rat and bug-infested hole.
After almost two weeks, they dumped him into the regular prison population. He was totally broken. It wasn’t long before the young man was ready to “cooperate” with Weissmann, which meant testifying against innocent Merrill Lynch defendants and convicting them based on Glisan’s “understanding” of a conversation he did not participate in.
Solitary confinement is complete sensory deprivation — an utterly dehumanizing and debilitating condition.
It is well-documented that solitary confinement causes mental health issues, exacerbates existing conditions of any kind, causes deteriorating physical health — as prisoners are only allowed out of their cage for an hour or two a day. It causes hallucinations, and one must necessarily doubt the validity of any information that results from this impaired state.
“Researchers have proven that prolonged solitary confinement causes a persistent and heightened state of anxiety and nervousness, headaches, insomnia, lethargy or chronic tiredness, nightmares, heart palpitations, fear of impending nervous breakdowns and higher rates of hypertension and early morbidity. Other effects include obsessive ruminations, confused thought processes, an oversensitivity to stimuli, irrational anger, social withdrawal, hallucinations, violent fantasies, emotional flatness, mood swings, chronic depression, feelings of overall deterioration, and suicidal ideation.”
Paul Manafort, seventy years old, has endured this torture for eight months. He’s now in a wheelchair, while Judge Amy Berman Jackson mocks his rapidly deteriorating health. Where is the outcry from the ACLU?
Where is the outcry from the media? How is this tolerated in what is supposed to be a civilized society?
Paul Manafort, whatever crime he may have committed, is no danger to anyone. He is literally being driven insane and killed by the brutal treatment inflicted on him by Mueller’s abusive tactics with the full support of federal judge Amy Berman Jackson.
Perhaps all judges and prosecutors, as part of their training before taking their jobs, should be required to spend 48 hours in solitary confinement. Until that happens, Paul Manafort’s conditions of confinement are inhuman, and he should be put in safe and respectable prison housing. He is no danger to anyone.
_______
Sidney Powell, a former federal prosecutor and veteran of 500 federal appeals, is the author of “LICENSED TO LIE: Exposing Corruption in the Department of Justice.” She is a senior fellow at the London Center for Policy Research.
https://dailycaller.com/2019/01/09/mueller-goon-squad/
by seemslikeadream » Fri Jan 18, 2019 7:47 pm
Know your BFEE: Homeland Czar & Petro-Turd Bernie Kerik
Not to belabor the point, this guy is little more than a shill for the Rudy the Wife-swapping Turd Giuliani and the Bush Organized Crime Family, Saudi Division. Campaigning for the drunken coke-whore AWOL psychotic moron, Kerrick had the cheek to say if Kerry were elected, Osama would strike again.
How interesting. Does he know something we don't know? How many dots did Smirko miss? Well, the Bushes and the bin Ladens have been business partners for years. Hey, Kerrick! Buy a clue, uh? -- before it's too late for Metropolis.
The following article from Newsday, which should know a bum when they see one, says this turd was in over his bald head as a narc and police commissioner of Gotham. It also spells out areas of interest where he and the BFEE can make money in the future -- Carlyle, Trireme Partnerships and whatever else the Big Money War Boys have going. So, as head of Homeland Security, we can be certain he won't mind doing whatever he's ordered to do by satan's monkey.
Kerik nomination is a ticking time bomb
Ellis Henican
December 3, 2004
Campaign bodyguard to Rudy Giuliani.
Errand boy for the Saudi royal family.
Energetic exploiter of Sept. 11th tragedy.
Tough-talking publicity-hound vowing to bring law and order to Iraq - then hightailing it out of there after a disastrous 14 weeks, leaving the place far less safe than he found it.
Oh, the bullet points on Bernie Kerik's real-life resume just go on and on. But is this really the guy we want standing between us and the terrorists?
------------
Edited on Sat Dec-04-04 11:40 PM by seemslikeadream
The Future of Iraq
US looking to train local Iraqi policemen to replace troops
PM - Monday, 25 August , 2003
Reporter: Rafael Epstein
MARK COLVIN: With its army under daily attack in Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States wants to rush through funding to train tens of thousands of local policemen. The US has secured permission from Hungary to train 28,000 Iraqis at a former Soviet base there. The US is also preparing to double its reconstruction aid to the new Afghan Government, with a major aim to have 20,000 new policemen ready to patrol by next March.
Rafael Epstein reports.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: Former New York City Police Commissioner, Bernard Kerik, is just about to finish a five-month tour in Iraq as adviser to the nascent Interior Ministry. He says the 40,000 Iraqi police now back on the streets are already taking over the work of western troops.
BERNARD KERIK: They're working extremely hard. They're very aggressive, the ones we have out there now, and that's what's going to begin the transition in disengagement of the military. And that has to continue to take the people out that are fighting against freedom in Iraq.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: Iraqis who work with Americans are targets for attacks. A bombing in early July, near the graduation ceremony for the first class of police recruits killed seven of them.
But another 30,000 police are needed. Most will be trained at an old Soviet base in Hungary, near the city of Tazsar. It was used before the war to train expatiate Iraqis who worked alongside the US army.
Mr Kerik says existing police academies in Iraq are not big enough and training in Hungary – if the US congress approves – is the only way to quickly handover to locals, who may be seen as more acceptable peacekeepers.
BERNARD KERIK: We have to hire another 25,000 to 30,000 over the next 18 months to 2 years. We have to get them trained – that's an enormous project. In the NYPD, on average I trained between 3,000 and 5,000 a year. We've got to do 30,000 to 35,000 over the next 18 months to 2 years. And it's going to be a difficult and tasking project but it can be done.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: Mr Kerik told American television 3,000 Iraqi officers have been knocked back because of their role in the old regime. Many of the officers who used to be policemen, have now been through an American-devised training course. But in some towns many of them have to share weapons, with one gun between every two officers, in a country where automatic rifles are readily available.
BERNARD KERIK: Well, I think, honestly, I think, they're doing a lot better than I anticipated. We have weeded out an enormous amount of the Baath Party members. We also have to teach them methods and principles of policing in a democratic society. We have to teach them that torture is not a part of an interrogation or an interview.
So, all of that is going on. It's going to take time to get there. It can work, it can happen and I have to say, they're taking out the Baath members out of the police department and off the streets.
more
http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2003/s931813.htm
Interview with Bernard Kerick
Aired June 25, 2003 - 20:41 ET
ZAHN: Let's talk about the recent escalation of violence against U.S. soldiers, British Soldiers.
What do you think is the root cause of it?
KERIK: The root cause is the loss of power to these people. Power is money. They've taken a heavy loss. As freedom grows throughout Iraq you're going to see continued resistance for a while, until we weed these people out. There's been an enormous amount of actionable intelligence where we're going in to take out members of the Ba'ath party, members -- Saddam loyalist. That's going to continue. But as freedom continues to agree -- grow, the people that have taken the heaviest losses, all of these loyalists to Saddam they are going to continue to fight until the end.
ZAHN: And how do you view their opposition?
As organized, as guerrilla warfare, how would you characterize it?
KERIK: Maybe guerrilla warfare. It's not as organized as people might think. Where there is organization, we've been sort of knocking it out. You know, are they talking perhaps, Yes. But, you know, this isn't going to go away overnight. They're not giving up as easily as people would think. They have taken a tremendous loss, and it's going to continue for a while.
more
http://cnnstudentnews.cnn.com/TRANSCRIP ... 25/se.10...
Black Coffee Briefing
Start: Tuesday, December 2, 2003 9:30 AM
End: Tuesday, December 2, 2003 11:45 AM
Location: Wohlstetter Conference Center, Twelfth Floor, AEI
1150 Seventeenth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036
Directions to AEI
AEI’s next Black Coffee Briefing will take place on Tuesday, December 2. Bernard Kerik-former interim interior minister of Iraq and senior policy adviser to L. Paul Bremer, the U.S. presidential envoy and administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq-will deliver a keynote address. Mr. Kerik will speak about his experiences leading the reconstitution and development of the Iraqi police, border control, and emergency management services.
http://www.aei.org/events/filter.,event ... vent_det...
United States Embassy
Tokyo, Japan
Bush Discusses Progress on Iraqi Police Force with Kerik
White House Report, October 3: Iraq, nominations
President Bush met in the Oval Office October 3 with former New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, who spent more than four months in Iraq helping to build an Iraqi police force, to discuss progress on improving the security situation in Iraq.
In remarks on the South Lawn afterwards, the president praised Commissioner Kerik for his efforts, saying that "because of his leadership, his knowledge and his experience" the police force in Baghdad was created very quickly.
more
http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/p/tp-20031006a1.html
August 30, 2004
Bernard Kerik
It is an honor to stand before you this evening, not only because of this Convention but because of the history that Madison Square Garden holds for me.
In 1986, I stood in this very arena, raised my right hand and was sworn in as a New York City Police Officer.
Fourteen years later, Mayor Giuliani appointed me as Police Commissioner of this great city and it was a great day in a great time. Crime was down; the city was prospering like never before, and then the unthinkable: America was under attack.
In the attacks of September 11th, we witnessed the worst and the best in humanity.
Through the devastation created by 19 evil men, we witnessed heroics by our first responders that were unparalleled.
We witnessed strong and decisive leadership on that day and those that followed in Mayor Giuliani, Governor Pataki and most importantly, our Commander in Chief, President Bush.
We didn't ask for this war, but faced with an evil whose only mission is to destroy our country we had to respond.
We had to fight this war abroad. And we had to fight the war here at home.
The President responded by creating the Department of Homeland Security, he enacted the PATRIOT Act and he has tripled our homeland security funding since 2001.
And today in Afghanistan, the Taliban has been unseated from power and the Al Queda leadership is on the run.
In Iraq, Saddam Hussein will finally be held accountable.
Today, we live in a much safer world as a result of this President's strong leadership.
As I think about his leadership, I think of the courage it took for our Commander in Chief to land on an airstrip in the dark of night, a world away, to be with our troops on Thanksgiving.
He was there for them as he was for us right here in New York City, inspiring a nation as he stood on hallowed ground, supporting the first responders.
This fight against terrorism takes decisiveness, not contradiction.
It takes continued support for our troops and first responders, not votes against our military, our intelligence and law enforcement spending.
Most importantly, it takes courage and inspirational leadership in the White House.
There are two candidates in this race, but only one fills those needs.
George W. Bush has my vote and for the future and safety of this country, I pray to God he has yours as well.
God bless you and God bless America
http://www.gopconvention.com/cgi-data/s ... files/a6...
Homeland Security nominee was once bankrupt NYPD cop
DECEMBER 7--While a recent stock windfall has left Bernard Kerik sitting on $6 million, President Bush's nominee to head the Homeland Security department hasn't always been so flush. In fact, Kerik was once a deadbeat who declared bankruptcy when he couldn't handle his credit card bills, loan repayments, or Sears and J.C. Penney tabs. Kerik filed for Chapter 7 protection in October 1987, when he was a 32-year-old New York Police Department officer living in Greenwich Village, according to federal court records. As detailed in Kerik's bankruptcy petition, a copy of which you'll find below, he listed debts totaling about $12,000, the largest of which was a $2089.52 Visa bill. He also claimed an inability to pay a $174 Sunoco tab. According to Kerik's filing, his expenses exceeded his income by about $200 per month. Along with costs like rent ($700), food $200), and "alimony, maintenance, or support payments" ($280), Kerik typed in "Barber" on the line calling for other expenses to be listed. Those tonsorial treatments set him back $20 a month.
HOMELAND SECURITY
Who Is Bernard Kerik?
Over the last several years, former NYC police commissioner Bernard B. Kerik, President Bush's nominee to be the next Secretary of Homeland Security, has become "a multimillionaire as a result of a lucrative partnership with former Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani." Indeed, the New York Daily News suggests, Kerik's selection was less based on merit than it was on Giuliani's "pull within the White House" and "Kerik's work on the campaign trail" for Bush. Kerik's record, however, raises serious question about his motives, ethics and ability to defend America. Kerik abruptly quit a critical job in Iraq, mismanaged rescue efforts in the aftermath of 9/11, used his official posts for personal enrichment and has been plagued by serious scandals. Here is a detailed look behind the mustache:
KERIK ABANDONS CRITICAL POST IN IRAQ TO TAKE A VACATION: The Washington Post reports that Kerik's track record on issues of national security is "spotty." Appointed by President Bush to train a new Iraqi police force in 2003, "Kerik came under criticism for inadequate screening of recruits as U.S. authorities rushed to deploy the force. It has been plagued by desertions and by allegations that insurgents have infiltrated the ranks." Worse, Kerik "quit four months into his six-month tenure in Iraq, telling New York reporters later that he needed a vacation."
KERIK CRITICIZED BY CONSERVATIVES FOR POST-9/11 OPERATIONS: A prominent Republican member of the Sept. 11 commission, former Navy secretary John F. Lehman, sharply criticized Kerik "for failures of leadership during the terrorist attacks" of 9/11. Lehman said that Kerik allowed turf battles with the Fire Department to "hamper rescue efforts" and called Kerik's leadership at the time "not worthy of the Boy Scouts."
KERIK SENT COPS OUT OF NYC TO RESEARCH HIS PERSONAL MEMOIRS: As police commissioner of NYC, Kerik used city police officers – who could have been protecting the people of New York – to help him write a book he would sell for personal profit. The Washington Post reports that the New York City Conflicts of Interest Board fined Kerik $2,500 for "sending two police officers to Ohio to help research his best-selling 2001 memoir, 'The Lost Son.'"
KERIK'S STUNNING CONFLICT OF INTEREST: Kerik has made $6.2 million dollars in profits from his relationship "with Taser International, a Scottsdale, Ariz., manufacturer of stun guns." Kerik was appointed as a director of the company immediately after he had the NYPD purchase the guns as police chief. Since 2002, Kerik has hawked Taser's products to police departments around the country. Recently the company has made an "aggressive push to enter markets either regulated or controlled by the federal government, most notably the Department of Homeland Security." Thomas Smith, the company president, said the company would "continue to go after that business" at the Department of Homeland Security should Kerik be confirmed.
KERIK'S DIRTY DOOR DEAL: Failing to follow proper bidding procedures, Kerik spent $50,000 on four security doors for the NYC police headquarters. The doors were all too heavy for the floors of the police headquarters and three are now in storage. Shortly after leaving his post as commissioner, "Kerik became an adviser to a company distributing the doors." He later renounced the post after "the door-maker's president was indicted for defrauding the city."
KERIK SHILLS FOR THE DRUG INDUSTRY: In April, the Washington Post reported that Kerik opened a high-priced consulting firm to sell his New York City police credentials to wealthy corporate bidders. The firm was promptly hired by the pharmaceutical industry's chief lobbying group to build opposition to letting American seniors purchase lower-priced, FDA-approved medicines from Canada. Without any evidence, Kerik claimed reimportation could "invite terrorists to launch a biological attack under the guise of a legal purchase."
KERIK ACCUSED OF FORCING GUARDS TO DO POLITICAL WORK: Newsweek reports that in 1999, Kerik "was named in a civil lawsuit as the architect of a system to force prison guards to work for Republicans in their off-hours." The suit, brought by a warden, claimed that Kerik would "hunt down" anyone deemed "disloyal." The suit was settled, with the warden winning $300,000 and a promotion, while Kerik's protégé was indicted in connection the scandal.
https://upload.democraticunderground.co ... 04x2788428
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