Bush Makes Trouble Even When Abroad

King George went to visit the pope and was met by large protests. This at a time when Italy was prosecuting 26 Americans for their role in the "extraordinary redition" program. Mr.Bush, being the arrogant type he is, would go to where he is trouble with the authorities. I'm surprised the Italian authorities didn't arrest the man responsible for breaking Italian law.

Of course, of the 26 individuals on trial all are believed to be CIA agents. Washington refuses to extradite the individuals charged, of course. It is believed that Poland and Romania allowed secret CIA prisons. The person victimized in this case wants compensation for his abuse at the hands of George. But he doesn't want money:

Prosecutors say a CIA-led team seized the Muslim cleric, bundled him into a van and drove him to a military base in northern Italy. From there, prosecutors say the CIA flew him via Germany to Egypt where he says he was tortured with electric shocks, beatings, rape threats and genital abuse.

The cleric's Egyptian lawyer, attending the trial, told reporters his client "wants to be compensated morally and wants those who kidnapped him to pay for their crimes".

For its part, the CIA rejects criticism of its role in running the illegal prisons:

The CIA has dismissed a Council of Europe report alleging that it ran secret jails for terror suspects in Europe after the 11 September attacks.

A CIA spokesman said the report was biased and distorted, and that the agency had operated lawfully.

While King George went abroad and lectured the rest of the world, at home he was dealt another defeat in his attempt to "reform" immigration laws. The immigration bill, "which had been widely criticized, died on a procedural motion Thursday night." Despite this, Bush's Republican lackeys believed the unpopular immigration proposals will pass someday, somehow:

Kyl, the chief Republican negotiator, told reporters on Friday that he believed a list of about 10 amendments would satisfy the concerns primarily on his side of the aisle, and that those could be considered in no more than three days on the Senate floor.

Even Democrats who were for the bill are against it (sorry for the Kerryism):

Eleven Democrats also voted against ending debate, even though many who supported it had complained that the bill created a class warfare scenario that locks temporary workers into second-class citizen status and rips apart families by favoring employability over blood ties in the approval of future immigrants.