Thom Hartmann - Ecuador Has Granted Julian Assange Asylum
by Thom Hartmann,posted Aug 16 2012 4:25PM
After being holed up in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London for almost two months, Julian Assange has been granted asylum by Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa. Now the hard part begins. In an explosive announcement this morning, Ecuador’s foreign minister announced the asylum decision and blasted the U.K. over its threats on Wednesday to storm the Ecuadorian Embassy and arrest Assange.
Foreign Minister Patino said about his nation’s diplomatic ties to the U.K.: “clouds are looming on the horizon.” He also said granting Assange asylum is based on fears that Assange could be extradited to the United States where he will, “not get a fair trial and his rights won’t be respected. Most probably he will face a military court in the U.S.”
Throughout this whole ordeal – Assange has been willing to speak with Swedish authorities in London and even go to Sweden as long as there was a guarantee that he would not be extradited to the United States. That guarantee could not be offered – and now Ecuador is willing to give Assange protection. However – the U.K. has announced it will not allow Assange to leave the country – and it will arrest him as soon as he steps foot outside of the embassy.
It’s important to remember that Assange has still never been charged with a crime. Keep an eye on this story; it has major implications beyond the fate of Assange himself.
Listen to me Monday through Friday 3 PM to 6 PM on WWRL 1600.
The Senate Judiciary Committee has advanced a so-called comprehensive immigration plan. And, as usual, Democrats conceded to Republican demands in the name of compromise. Over the last five days, the Judiciary Committee members considered over...
I must admit, I've never been to Oklahoma. I have family friends from there, but it's one part of the Great Plains I've managed to avoid in my life. Yet that didn't stop me from feeling quite a bit of empathy with those folks in...
For over a week, Republicans have refused to focus on anything but so-called scandal. And, it turns out, that's exactly the way they want it. On Thursday, the Heritage Foundation, a prominent conservative think tank, sent a letter to...
A new CNN poll shows Obama's favorability rating at 53 percent. That's up from 51 percent in April, and up from the 51.1 percent from the poll that really counted last November. Like before the scandals, 45 percent of people disapprove of the...
Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives have made their point – they hate Obamacare. And, just in case anyone didn't get the message the first 36 times they made that point, they're about to waste even more taxpayer...
It turns out the IRS was investigating conservative organizations seeking tax-exempt status. Duh! And the TSA has been looking at people seeking to get on airplanes. None of the conservative organizations that the IRS was "targeting" were...
The Associated Press has accused the Justice Department of "massive and unprecedented intrusion." That's according to one of the AP's top executives, after learning that the government secretly acquired two months of the news...
It seems that the Republicans won't stop until their attacks over Benghazi are as vicious as the attack in Benghazi. The Republicans would have you believe that the Obama administration altered the talking points on Benghazi out of political...
According to the U.S. Supreme Court, Monsanto has the right to control our food supply. In a unanimous ruling released this morning, the nine Justices sided with the agricultural giant, and held that an Indiana farmer violated Monsanto's...
Yesterday, Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives postponed all floor votes so they could hold their ninth hearing about Benghazi. Instead of working on any number of pressing issues effecting Americans, Republicans spent nine...
