Mr. President, Tell My Why?

Mr. President, could you please explain the reasoning you have used in allowing your Attorney General to hold the terrorist trials of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (KSM) and others in a civilian court in New York City??  I listened to AG Eric Holder testify before the Senate several days ago concerning this decision and I heard him say that KSM does not get to choose the venue of his trial, but rather he (AG Holder) would make that decision and he had done so.  However, given the uproar that this decision has caused, one is forced to believe that such a decision would not have been made without your approval.  So I ask you, President Obama, why are you doing this to our country?  What is there to be gained by such a move and at what cost?

We already have heard AG Holder state that he is confident that he has plenty of evidence to get a conviction and, ultimately, the death penalty for KSM's crimes.  However, if we are going to accord KSM all the rights of an American civilian facing criminal charges, then there are some real questions to be addressed.  Questions of coercive interrogations are going to put an obvious taint on much, if not all, of the information obtained from KSM.  Now, my understanding is that KSM was ready to plead guilty before a military tribunal and face sentence for his crimes.  Given that fact, what does a trial in New York City get for the American people that we don't already have?  To give KSM and his cohorts and lawyers the chance to bad mouth America on a world stage is nothing short of STUPID...unless, of course, you wnat this kind of negative publicity for the country you supposedly love and are sworn to protect.  It is even possible that, given the rules of evidence in a civilian court, that KSM could be acquitted of the charges against him and go free.  What benefit to we gain that makes taking that chance a good gamble?

Another consideration is the monetary cost of such a trial.  Tell me, Mr. President, how many millions of dollars of TAXPAYER MONEY will be spent on this whole process, when you take into account all the legal fees, including all appeals, all the money for additional security in the courthouse, the extra security in general that will be required in New York City and all the other items that will be a necessary expense for this extravaganza.  It would seem to me that, before you spend those hard earned tax dollars to get a conviction for a criminal who already wants to confess, you should consider the wishes of those of us who will foot the bill, THE TAXPAYERS.  And, as I am sure you know, Mr. President, several well known polls have already shown that the public is against this decision.

Given these considerations, one is forced to wonder what your real agenda is here.  Do you really believe that this trial, in this setting, is really in the best interests of this country?  Or is this the manifestation of a desire to politicize this matter as a means of putting the Bush administration on trial in an attembt to deflect criticism for your own poor political record as president thus far?

It is time, Mr. Obama, for you and your left wing liberal friends to get past their fixation on the perceived mistakes of the Bush administration and quit trying to keep bringing the country backwards in hopes that this action will somehow propel your administration forward by favorable comparison.  DO WHAT IS RIGHT AND IN THE BEST INTEREST OF AMERICA, MR. PRESIDENT, AND CHANGE THIS DECISION FOR THE GOOD OF EVERYONE INVOLVED.

Thank you and God bless the United States of America!!