JUNE 18 - 24, 2004 The Cheney Connection: Last week the Securities and Exchange Commission opened an investigation into whether Halliburton paid some $180 million in bribes to Nigerian officials. It’s an allegation that the French government has been examining for a year, with the VP among the targets. BY DOUG IRELAND + Open City: Blame John Kerry for the abysmal showing at anti-war protests. BY STEVEN MIKULAN

Sign on to support a powerful new ad apologizing to the Arab world for the torture at Abu Ghraib. Also, call your Senators to reaffirm our opposition to torture.

Dear MoveOn member,

By refusing to hold
senior administration officials accountable, President Bush has failed
to fully repudiate the torture that occurred at Abu Ghraib. Every
passing day brings new photos and new news of how these despicable
techniques were sanctioned at the very top, but Bush won't even condemn
Rush Limbaugh for saying that the tactics were "brilliant" and the
troops were "just blowing off a little steam."

So it's up to us to
try to make things right. Our campaign to hold Donald Rumsfeld
accountable will continue. But today, there are two other ways we can
help -- joining an apology from Americans of faith to the world, and
helping pass a legal re-commitment to the Geneva Conventions and what
they stand for.

First, an important new group called FaithfulAmerica¹
is putting a very moving TV ad on the air in Arab countries. The ad is
a montage of American religious leaders -- Christian, Jewish, and
Muslim -- humbly expressing the regrets so many of us feel for what
happened.

You can watch the ad, sign onto it, and help get it on the air, at:

   http://www.faithfulamerica.org/adclip.htm

At the end of the ad,
FaithfulAmerica will state the number of people who've signed on, so
the more people who endorse the message, the more effective it will be.

Please sign on today.

Second, the Senate has
an opportunity now to reaffirm our opposition to torture and our
commitment to the Geneva Conventions, which ban it. The Senate is
debating a bill authorizing Defense Department actions for this year,
and Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) has offered an amendment repudiating
torture and re-confirming our commitment to uphold international human
rights as specified in the Geneva Conventions.²

A vote on the Durbin amendment is expected early this week. Please call your Senators now, at:

  Senator Dianne Feinstein

  Phone: 202-224-3841

  Senator Barbara Boxer

  Phone: 202-224-3553

Urge them to support
the Durbin amendment to the Defense bill. Then say something about why
it's important to you that we repudiate torture and support the Geneva
Conventions.

Please let us know you're calling, at:

  http://www.moveon.org/callrumsfeld.html?id=2944-3261555-WI_z2iDty5Vgg6rtIQqU5A

Thank you, for all you do.

Sincerely,

--Carrie, Joan, Lee, Noah, Peter, and Wes

  The MoveOn.org Team

  Tuesday, June 15th, 2004

Footnotes:

1. FaithfulAmerica is a new project of the National Council of Churches,
"an online community of people of faith who want to build a more just and compassionate nation."

2. For the full text of the Durbin Amendment, click here.

MotherJones.com | News: "Orwell meets Kafka The U.S. runs a global system of injustice, purposely mounted in the legal and moral dark. May/June 2004 IssueBy Tom Engelhardt"

... and justice for all. Photo «courtesy» of t r u t h o u t.