It took the resignation of State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley on Sunday before mainstream media outlets began giving serious attention to the condition of Pfc. Bradley Manning, the 23-year-old who has been imprisoned for nearly a year on the suspicion of having passed classified information to WikiLeaks.
Spencer Ackerman pointed out the total absurdity in making Crowley the object of punishment.
Notice that no one besides Manning from within the Obama administration or the military has been held accountable for the actual leak itself. But P.J. Crowley gets fired for the secondary issue of exercising common sense, candor and consistency about Manning. My old FDL colleague Michael Whitney is completely correct: Obama owns Manning's torture. He owned it before, but Crowley's firing underscores it.
Ackerman's not alone. Yesterday, both The New York Times and the LA Times published editorials condemning the treatment of Manning, and The New York Times even went so far as to suggest that the abuse must have President Obama's consent.
Pfc. Bradley Manning, who has been imprisoned for nine months on charges of handing government files to WikiLeaks, has not even been tried let alone convicted. Yet the military has been treating him abusively, in a way that conjures creepy memories of how the Bush administration used to treat terror suspects. Inexplicably, it appears to have President Obama's support to do so.
But how do they know what they know about Manning's mistreatment?
When Josh Rogin of Foreign Policy’s The Cable reported facts either incorrectly, or at least to the Pentagon’s disliking, he was quickly corrected by Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Media Operations Col. David Lapan, who wrote a line-by-line account of Manning’s status.
Quantico is a military brig, not a prison, and it is not a maximum security facility. http://www.quantico.usmc.mil/activities/display.aspx?PID=588&Section=SECBN
Manning, however, is considered a maximum custody detainee. He is not "under isolation 23 hours a day." Here are the facts of his pre-trial confinement:
PFC Manning is not in solitary confinement. He has a single-occupancy cell, like all of the other detainees.
PFC Manning is not in isolation.
PFC Manning is a maximum custody detainee in a prevention of injury status.
PFC Manning is not currently on suicide watch.
PFC Manning is being held in the same quarters section with other pre-trial detainees
PFC Manning is allowed to watch television and read newspapers.
PFC Manning is allowed one-hour per day to exercise.
PFC Manning is provided well-balanced, nutritious meals three times a day.
PFC Manning receives visitors and mail and can write letters.
PFC Manning routinely meets with doctors and his attorney.
PFC Manning is allowed telephone calls.
PFC Manning is being treated just like every other detainee in the brig.
Also, there is no 'daily disrobing and various other humiliations.' In recent days, as the result of concerns for PFC Manning's personal safety, his undergarments were taken from him during sleeping hours. PFC Manning at all times had a bed and a blanket to cover himself. He was not made to stand naked for morning count but, but on one day, he chose to do so. There were no female personnel present at the time. PFC Manning has since been issued a garment to sleep in at night. He is clothed in a standard jumpsuit during the day.
The problem is, it's not at all clear exactly where the facts are coming from as they are being reported by numerous outlets. In attempt to investigate how fact-gathering among the media is occurring, Allison Kilkenny requested an interview with Manning through the on-duty public affairs officer at Quantico, who told her: “Members of the media are not allowed to visit the brig. We have an obligation to ensure the safety and security of all detainees. If you are interested in interviewing Pfc. Manning I recommend you contact his lawyer, Mr. David Coombs, to arrange to speak to Pfc. Manning at some point when he is not located inside the brig.”
Of course, there are other avenues for obtaining information regarding Manning's status and condition and those will be explored tomorrow.
Note: I've asked the editors of the editorial pages at The New York Times and the LA Times for comment, but neither have responded as of yet.
Allen McDuffee is blogging about the investigations into whether Manning leaked documents to the website WikiLeaks this week for TAPPED.
