Kenny, Stephen - short clip - FallofAmericanDemocracy
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Transcript
Transcripts may contain inaccuracies.
- | Over the years, I've kept in touch with him | 0:03 |
from time to time and more recently | 0:05 | |
and this is publicly known | 0:07 | |
because Habib reported it in the newspapers | 0:08 | |
that he'd asked me to assist him in suing the US government | 0:10 | |
over his rend..., his rendition to Egypt. | 0:15 | |
Interviewer | Are you? | 0:18 |
- | Well, I would, if I could, is the, the reality, | 0:19 |
I mean I met with Michael Ratner in New York | 0:23 | |
in January, 2011 | 0:27 | |
but you know, the cases that have been run | 0:32 | |
have all lost on national security grounds, | 0:35 | |
which again I find astounding. | 0:38 | |
I mean, that would never happen in Australia, you know. | 0:41 | |
Habib is now suing the Australian government here | 0:43 | |
but the Australian government not saying national security | 0:47 | |
cause it doesn't exist, | 0:49 | |
that defense for the government does not exist. | 0:50 | |
But it essentially gives the government | 0:53 | |
the capacity to commit murder | 0:54 | |
and mayhem with complete immunity. | 0:57 | |
I mean, I find that quite astounding | 1:00 | |
and, and reading the cases | 1:02 | |
the, the willingness of the court to give over | 1:05 | |
to this national security interest is, | 1:09 | |
is I think a matter that seriously undermines | 1:13 | |
any democratic country and perhaps explains | 1:15 | |
why the American, you know, Secret Services | 1:18 | |
get away with so much. | 1:23 | |
Because they know they can cover it all up | 1:24 | |
with national security. | 1:26 | |
And I don't think that that's a good thing for democracy. | 1:27 | |
Guantanamo Bay, I think, is going to be seen | 1:31 | |
as the significant start to the fall of American democracy. | 1:35 | |
I think that, you know, the Americans are facing | 1:41 | |
a very difficult time economically | 1:43 | |
and I think politically as well. | 1:46 | |
And I think that Guantanamo by will stand out as a beacon | 1:49 | |
of when things really started to go bad. | 1:53 | |
I hope that never comes to pass, but I really fear it. | 1:56 |
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