Judge orders release of Abu Ghraib photos

The president and his party are having one lousy stretch.

A federal judge has rejected Bush's pathetic argument that releasing a collection of as-yet unpublished pictures from Abu Ghraib would incite more acts of terrorism. The claim was ludicrous on its face. It was a shameless, desperate ploy to suppress outrage over the outrageous.

The Washington Post reports:

U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein said that terrorists "do not need pretexts for their barbarism" and that suppressing the pictures would amount to submitting to blackmail.

"Our nation does not surrender to blackmail, and fear of blackmail is not a legally sufficient argument to prevent us from performing a statutory command. Indeed, the freedoms that we champion are as important to our success in Iraq and Afghanistan as the guns and missiles with which our troops are armed," he said.

Hellerstein ordered the release of 74 pictures and three videotapes from the Abu Ghraib prison, potentially opening the military up to more embarrassment from a scandal that stirred outrage around the world last year when photos of abuse became public.

The Post notes that further appeals are expected. Bush will likely appeal all the way to the Roberts Supreme Court. This prospect should mute any celebration of Judge Hellerstein's ruling.