A top United States senator called Monday for the creation of a "truth commission" to probe alleged abuses under former President George W. Bush, including the promotion of war in Iraq, detainee treatment, and wiretapping without a warrant.
Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said he wanted to heal what he called sharp political divides under Bush and to prevent future abuses. "I'm doing this not to humiliate people or punish people but to get the truth out," he said.
Obama said at the first press conference of his young presidency that he had not seen the proposal from Leahy and would have a look at it--"but my general orientation is to say let's get it right moving forward."
"If there are clear instances of wrongdoing...people should be prosecuted just like any ordinary citizen," said the president.
Leahy compared his proposed panel to South Africa's post-apartheid Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and stressed, "We need to come to a shared understanding of the failures of the recent past."
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