Morning Must Reads

But neither the ban nor Obama’s plan to revive an treaty to restrict the sale of small arms across international borders, though, would likely do much to stem the violence in a nation where corruption and increasingly brazen attacks from narco-militias on law enforcement have undermined the rule of law so massively.

Writers Peter Nicholas and Tracy Wilkinson make clear that Obama’s praise and promises of help (including on global warming) will not likely stanch the bleeding.

“Not all Mexicans share Obama’s opinion of Calderon. The Mexican leader has been criticized for underestimating how deeply drug gangs have corrupted local governments and police forces. Critics also contend that Calderon is relying too heavily on military force while neglecting politically sensitive areas that should also be addressed, such as money laundering, judicial reform and high-level corruption.

Calderon’s use of military force also has led to accusations of human rights abuses. Mexico’s National Human Rights Commission has said citizens’ complaints of killings, rape and other abuses have grown sixfold since Calderon assigned the army to the drug war shortly after he took office.”
 
Hayden and Mukasey — The President Ties His Own Hands on Terror
 
The previous head of the CIA, Gen. Michale Hayden, and the previous attorney general, Michael Mukasey took the surprising step of sending an Op-Ed to the Wall Street Journal about President Obama’s decision to release documents that legally defined torture for agents and operatives during the Bush administration.

Though the administration is only denouncing, not prosecuting uses of the then-approved techniques, the former top spy and chief lawyer for the government argue that the release and repudiation of the narrower definition for torture used by the former administration has put the intelligence community on notice that today’s Jack Bauer could be tomorrow’s criminal.

“Those charged with the responsibility of gathering potentially lifesaving information from unwilling captives are now told essentially that any legal opinion they get as to the lawfulness of their activity is only as durable as political fashion permits. Even with a seemingly binding opinion in hand, which future CIA operations personnel would take the risk? There would be no wink, no nod, no handshake that would convince them that legal guidance is durable. Any president who wants to apply such techniques without such a binding and durable legal opinion had better be prepared to apply them himself.”
 
Wall Street Journal — Veterans a Focus of FBI Extremist Probe
 
As Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano was busy defending a report that painted many on the Right as well as returning combat veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan as potential terrorists, writers Cam Simpson and Gary Fields were finding out that the FBI was actually monitoring returning veterans for ideologically unsavory activities.

It was the FBI investigation into veterans, in fact, that helped spur the report from DHS.

In what is sure to had more wind to the gale of criticism the Obama administration is facing from Republicans and veterans groups.

“The FBI documents show the bureau was working with investigators inside the nation’s uniformed services “in an effort to identify those current or former soldiers who pose a domestic terrorism threat.” The other agencies working with the FBI are the U.S. Army Criminal Investigative Division, the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.”
 
New York Times — Obama Adviser Said to Be Tied to Pension Deal
 
Not much good news for the auto bailout team today. Investors are balking at the plan to finance the merger between Chrysler and Fiat and, as writers Danny Hakim and Louise Story reveal, the head of the president’s car cabinet, Stephen Rattner, allegedly arranged to pay $1 million to aides of New York’s comptroller for the rights to manage the state’s pension fund investments.

Ratter hasn’t been named in the criminal or civil charges flowing from the state’s pension scandal and the administration is so far standing by him, but the news will not make good-government types already suspicious of Rattner very happy. 

“Mr. Rattner’s selection for the auto job was a topic of much speculation beginning in January, but it took several weeks to be settled. Two people close to the Obama administration said there were a handful of concerns about Mr. Rattner before he was named to his new position, but they declined to elaborate on what those concerns were.”
 
Bloomberg – U.S. May Retain Grip on Banks With Warrants After Share Buyback

Bankers are saying that in the rush to bail out lenders foundering on the shoals of irresponsible loans the Treasury Department must have accidentally included provisions that would still give the government control over the banks even after the money was paid back.
The folks at Treasury must be having a good laugh at that one.

Writer Rebecca Christie explains how the effects of the bailouts will linger.

“The government will continue to hold warrants, attached to every capital injection it has made, even after any share buybacks, Treasury officials said. Banks seeking to escape the government’s grip want to retire the warrants — which give the right to buy stock in the future at a preset price — at the same time they acquire the government-owned preferred shares.

The officials said the U.S. would give up the warrants only after subsequent talks with appraisers and the banks to agree on a price. As long as the warrants remain, lenders would continue to face some federal constraints, including limits on hiring non-American citizens, the officials said. Lenders would be freed of restrictions on executive pay and dividends, they said.”