At this point my replies to you have been a long standing tradition. I don't know why, but that's reality.
It has been 23 years, and I have no explanation, from anyone, at all, why they commuted the death sentence. Then they reversed. It has to be Michigan and Minnesota politics. It is that simple. That's scary.
In all likelihood Austin can't legally do what he just did. The plea agreements are horrendous. They should never have been signed -- but they were. Austin's after-the-fact supposed "voiding" of these plea agreements is pure election year smoke-and-mirrors to give the Biden-Harris Administration political cover.
Eleven months ago Brig. Gen. Susan K. Escallier was appointed as the Convening Authority over the Military Commission at Guantanamo. In other words she had command authority over the War Court at Gitmo. By this appointment, Secretary of Defense Austin delegated his authority under the Military Commissions Act of 2009, Section 948h. The announcement of her posting expressly provided her authority included "approving plea deals and deciding whether prosecutors can seek death sentences" (Letter 9/6/2023 jagcnet.army.mil)
Note Austin is not revoking a plea offer made by Escallier. Rather, he is purporting to abrogate the plea agreements -- contracts -- signed on behalf of the United States by Escallier, who as the Secretary of DOD's appointed Commissioning Officer had express authority to bind the US at the time the agreements were signed.
It's fundamental contract law that if a subordinate, acting with authority to do so, enters into a contract on your behalf, the contract is binding and you cannot avoid that contract by thereafter revoking the subordinate's authority.
Austin's supposed "heroic" act to now "save the day" and revoke the already executed plea agreements is just "window dressing" because it's legally meaningless. When he states, "Effective immediately, I hereby withdraw your authority in the above-referenced case to enter into a pre-trial agreement and reserve such authority to myself," Austin has to know that doesn't legally change the fact that Escallier had fully authority at the time she signed the agreements.
When Austin goes on to state, "I hereby withdraw from the three pre-trial agreements that you signed on July 31, 2024 in the above-referenced case," he is in actuality breaching the plea agreements -- in the law it's called an "anticipatory breach." By Austin breaching the agreements before the terrorist defendants are scheduled to enter guilty pleas, the terrorist defendants are entitled to the agreed plea deal and Austin cannot oppose it by alleging any non-performance by the defendants of their side of the bargain.
Bottomline ... it's a legally meaningless but politically brilliant slight-of-hand making it falsely look like the Biden-Harris Administration didn't just give a horrific plea deal to 9/11 terrorist -- when if fact that's exactly what they did. Worse, it falsely makes Biden-Harris look heroic - that their Administration stopped this miscarriage of justice -- when that will later prove untrue when a court likely after the election rules the defendants get their deal after all.
P.S. You really should feel bad for Brigadier General Escallier, who not only got scapegoated but got thrown under a tank. In the pecking order of 9/11 evil doers, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is second only to Bin Laden. While fully authorized to enter plea agreements on behalf of the United States, it is inconceivable that General Escallier acted on her own in deciding to enter these agreements with Khalid and his two confederates. Doing so would almost be like giving Bin Laden, himself, a free pass from execution without getting Chain of Command's approval. Maybe done in a way that Austin as Sec of DOD and Biden as Commander-in-Chief have the ever popular "plausible deniability" and where Escallier is the buffer for Austin & Austin is the buffer for Biden.
It's nonsense to think something as politically sensitive as a plea deal for the 9/11 mastermind in an election year got decided at the Brig Gen level. But that's exactly how Austin makes it look by immediately & publicly firing her & revoking the very settlement authority that he had delegated to her just 11 months ago.
When Escallier got the job last year, Gitmo had only a handful of remaining detainees and it's clear she was tasked with closing those remaining cases. Indeed Biden just stated getting Gitmo closed was part of his lame duck legacy. True leaders don't leave subordinates hanging out to dry for doing exactly the job that those leaders wanted.
Executed by hanging? I propose Yankee Stadium as the venue.
Would a trial need to occur? I don't know as there was an attempt at a plea deal. We'll see how this will play out. Perhaps President Trump can short circuit that. If one does need to occur, you would not believe what I am going to propose from commiefornia. I was at the Rockies @ Padres game last night at Petco Park. We were lazy and in one of the lounges near our section when our national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner, was performed. Of all the crazy conversations going on about the work day, personal lives, baseball, whatever, when the anthem began, everyone just shut up. Nearly everyone stood to view a TV, all hats came off, and many hands were on hearts! If a trial must occur, could we please have it at the Federal Building in downtown San Diego? I won't duck out on jury duty for that one!
At this point my replies to you have been a long standing tradition. I don't know why, but that's reality.
It has been 23 years, and I have no explanation, from anyone, at all, why they commuted the death sentence. Then they reversed. It has to be Michigan and Minnesota politics. It is that simple. That's scary.
AMEN to the clarity of this article.
Is this a joke?
Dims don't do anything right or decent. They thought this would poll badly and told Austin to act. Biden is well in the rear mirror.
No Dim is decent. All Dims are excrement. Especially Lloyd Austin.
All Dims should hang beside these terrorrists.
Pay attention, Christian.
You've been hoodwinked.
In all likelihood Austin can't legally do what he just did. The plea agreements are horrendous. They should never have been signed -- but they were. Austin's after-the-fact supposed "voiding" of these plea agreements is pure election year smoke-and-mirrors to give the Biden-Harris Administration political cover.
Eleven months ago Brig. Gen. Susan K. Escallier was appointed as the Convening Authority over the Military Commission at Guantanamo. In other words she had command authority over the War Court at Gitmo. By this appointment, Secretary of Defense Austin delegated his authority under the Military Commissions Act of 2009, Section 948h. The announcement of her posting expressly provided her authority included "approving plea deals and deciding whether prosecutors can seek death sentences" (Letter 9/6/2023 jagcnet.army.mil)
Note Austin is not revoking a plea offer made by Escallier. Rather, he is purporting to abrogate the plea agreements -- contracts -- signed on behalf of the United States by Escallier, who as the Secretary of DOD's appointed Commissioning Officer had express authority to bind the US at the time the agreements were signed.
It's fundamental contract law that if a subordinate, acting with authority to do so, enters into a contract on your behalf, the contract is binding and you cannot avoid that contract by thereafter revoking the subordinate's authority.
Austin's supposed "heroic" act to now "save the day" and revoke the already executed plea agreements is just "window dressing" because it's legally meaningless. When he states, "Effective immediately, I hereby withdraw your authority in the above-referenced case to enter into a pre-trial agreement and reserve such authority to myself," Austin has to know that doesn't legally change the fact that Escallier had fully authority at the time she signed the agreements.
When Austin goes on to state, "I hereby withdraw from the three pre-trial agreements that you signed on July 31, 2024 in the above-referenced case," he is in actuality breaching the plea agreements -- in the law it's called an "anticipatory breach." By Austin breaching the agreements before the terrorist defendants are scheduled to enter guilty pleas, the terrorist defendants are entitled to the agreed plea deal and Austin cannot oppose it by alleging any non-performance by the defendants of their side of the bargain.
Bottomline ... it's a legally meaningless but politically brilliant slight-of-hand making it falsely look like the Biden-Harris Administration didn't just give a horrific plea deal to 9/11 terrorist -- when if fact that's exactly what they did. Worse, it falsely makes Biden-Harris look heroic - that their Administration stopped this miscarriage of justice -- when that will later prove untrue when a court likely after the election rules the defendants get their deal after all.
P.S. You really should feel bad for Brigadier General Escallier, who not only got scapegoated but got thrown under a tank. In the pecking order of 9/11 evil doers, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is second only to Bin Laden. While fully authorized to enter plea agreements on behalf of the United States, it is inconceivable that General Escallier acted on her own in deciding to enter these agreements with Khalid and his two confederates. Doing so would almost be like giving Bin Laden, himself, a free pass from execution without getting Chain of Command's approval. Maybe done in a way that Austin as Sec of DOD and Biden as Commander-in-Chief have the ever popular "plausible deniability" and where Escallier is the buffer for Austin & Austin is the buffer for Biden.
It's nonsense to think something as politically sensitive as a plea deal for the 9/11 mastermind in an election year got decided at the Brig Gen level. But that's exactly how Austin makes it look by immediately & publicly firing her & revoking the very settlement authority that he had delegated to her just 11 months ago.
When Escallier got the job last year, Gitmo had only a handful of remaining detainees and it's clear she was tasked with closing those remaining cases. Indeed Biden just stated getting Gitmo closed was part of his lame duck legacy. True leaders don't leave subordinates hanging out to dry for doing exactly the job that those leaders wanted.
Executed by hanging? I propose Yankee Stadium as the venue.
Would a trial need to occur? I don't know as there was an attempt at a plea deal. We'll see how this will play out. Perhaps President Trump can short circuit that. If one does need to occur, you would not believe what I am going to propose from commiefornia. I was at the Rockies @ Padres game last night at Petco Park. We were lazy and in one of the lounges near our section when our national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner, was performed. Of all the crazy conversations going on about the work day, personal lives, baseball, whatever, when the anthem began, everyone just shut up. Nearly everyone stood to view a TV, all hats came off, and many hands were on hearts! If a trial must occur, could we please have it at the Federal Building in downtown San Diego? I won't duck out on jury duty for that one!