Brennan Center for Justice

Welcome to the first-ever Brennan Center
pop quiz.  Since each week brings more
depressing news of torture, executive privilege, government spying, etc., we
thought we'd share this test.  If you've
read the Brennan Center's "12
Steps To Restore Checks and Balances"—which offers remedies for an
out-of-control executive—then you're virtually assured of an A+. 

As most of you know, the first step toward ending an
out-of-control executive is public awareness. So give this quiz to a friend and see if they're doing their job.  Are you?

Question 1
- Last week, ABC News reported on the
"Principals Committee" meetings in which White House officials decided
which intero..... (oh heck, let's just call it what it is)...torture techniques
could be used.  Who were the members of
the committee?

• A)    Dick
  Cheney
• B)    Donald
  Rumsfeld
• C)    John
  Ashcroft
• D)    Condoleeza
  Rice
• E)    All
  of the above

For extra credit, tell us which step of the 12 Steps plan
would remedy this kind of situation?

Question 2
- According to the New York Times,  the Office of Legal Counsel issued  memos
that wrongly claim that the President's "wartime powers largely exempted
interrogators from laws banning harsh treatment"?  Who wrote the memos?

• A)    William
  J. Brennan, Jr.
• B)     Dahlia
  Lithwick
• C)    John
  Yoo
• D)    "Jack"
  McCoy
• E)     All
  of the above

Question 3
- Earlier this month, the Associated Press noted, "President Bush's refusal to
let two confidants provide information to Congress about fired federal
prosecutors represents the
most expansive view of executive privilege since Watergate."  Who are the two confidants claiming executive
privilege?

• A)    Harriet
  Miers
• B)     John
  Mitchell
• C)    Joshua
  Bolten
• D)    Linda
  Tripp
• E)     All
  of the above

Question 4
- A
recent op-ed in the Los Angeles Times
argues that we need to do more to protect Americans' right to habeas
corpus.  However, the U.S. government
disagrees and would deny habeas protection to which group of people?

• A)    American
  citizens
• B)     Americans
  detained abroad and subject to death and torture
• C)    Foreign
  nationals who have not been charged with a crime
• D)    An
  MA candidate in computer science at Bradley
  University in Peoria, IL
• E)     All
  of the above

Question 5
- The New York Times reported on the existence
of CIA
and D.O.D. "harsh" interrogation tapes that show detainees being tortured.  Nonetheless, which current and former U.S. officials insisted "the US does not
torture?"

• A)    George
  W. Bush
• B)     Dick
  Cheney
• C)    Condoleeza
  Rice
• D)    George
  Tenet
• E)     All
  of the above

Question 6
- The Washington Post reported on an
analysis of President Bush's use of signing statements.  Which laws has he bypassed with signing statements?

• A)    Postal
  regulations that require the government to get a warrant before opening a
  citizen's mail
• B)    Whistle-blower
  laws that provide job protection for federal workers who alert Congress to
  government wrongdoing
• C)    Laws
  that stop the military from using information that isn't "lawfully
  collected."
• D)    Laws
  that require the President to tell Congress when the executive branch decides
  not to follow U.S.
  laws
• E)     Congress'
  authority to limit abusive interrogation techniques
• F)     All
  of the above

And the answers are:

1)      E
- all of the above.  Step
4 of our "12 Steps...." plan calls on Congress to "make it clear: no more
torture, no more torture lite."

2)      C
- John Yoo.  Step
11 would reform the Office of Legal Counsel by insulating it from improper
White House influence and requiring maximum transparency for OLC legal
opinions.

3)      A
& C - Harriet Miers and Joshua Bolten. 
Step
7 urges Congress to regulate the use of executive privilege, particularly
in situations that may involve wrong-doing 
within the executive branch.

4)      E
- all of the above.  Sigh.  Step
5 demands the restoration of habeas corpus and would restore the federal
courts traditional authority to hear challenges to unlawful detentions.

5)      E
- all of the above.  Oooops. In addition
to "no torture," Step
9 would have Congress strengthen and review the reporting requirements
concerning national security and intelligence activities.  Somehow, Jon Stewart found a
way to make this funny.  

6)      G
- all of the above.  Step
2 calls on the presidential candidates to renounce the use of signing
statements to circumvent the law.

How'd you score?

*Special thanks to Susan Lehman and Patrick Wyllie for their
assistance with this.