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DOES DEPUTY
ATTY GEN PICK INDICATE A SADDLEBACK ‘TAKE BACK’?
President Of
Morality In Media Concerned This Appointment Doesn’t Square With
Earlier
Promises
NEW YORK (Feb.
4, 2009) – The Senate Judiciary Committee
has scheduled hearings tomorrow to examine the
nomination
of David Ogden, President Obama’s choice for Deputy Attorney General.
Mr.
Ogden has a long history of making “ACLU-minded” arguments in court
cases involving
obscene materials, harmful-to-minors materials, and child pornography. Morality in Media President Robert Peters
is available for interviews to discuss this nomination.
During
the 2008 Presidential campaign, then candidate Obama said (Saddleback
Presidential
Forum, 08/16/08) that curbing human trafficking must be “a top
priority” and
also said (“The Candidates on Faith,” Time, 08/07/08)
that there are a
“range of
moral-values issues that must be addressed in our families, our
communities…But
we can't just talk about ‘family values.’ We actually have to stand up
for
policies that value families.” As a U.S.
Senator, he also co-sponsored
the
“Combating Child Exploitation Act of 2007.”
MIM
President Robert Peters had the following comments:
Nominating
David Ogden for such a high position in the
Justice Department raises questions about whether the new President
means
business about curbing sexual trafficking in women and children and
other
sexual exploitation of children and about standing up for policies that
value
families.
It
would be one thing if David
Ogden had represented pornographers or those defending pornography in
one or
two cases over a long distinguished legal career. But
this man went into court over and over
again to represent soft-core and hardcore pornographers and other smut
peddlers.
Ogden also
served under former
Attorney General Janet Reno, who proved to be one of the best friends
pornography distributors ever had, including distributors of child porn. Reno had a reputation for fighting child
pornography; but under her leadership the Justice Department largely
ignored
the explosion of child pornography on the Internet, focusing instead on
the
relatively small number of adults who create child porn or who attempt
to make
contact with children for sexual purposes.
Janet Reno
also brought to an end
a very successful effort against commercial distributors of “adult”
obscenity,
which may not depict actual children but does depict 18 year olds who
look
younger, sexual perversions of every kind imaginable, and the
degradation, rape
and torture of women.
Janet Reno
even refused to
enforce federal obscenity laws against Internet hardcore pornographers
who
allowed children to view their materials free of charge and without
proof of age.
President Barack
Obama cannot
have it both ways.
If he wants to be tough on those
who traffic in women and children and who sexually exploit children in
other
ways, he must also be tough on distributors of obscene materials.
The
explosion of “adult” obscenity
(no actual minors depicted) contributes to sexual exploitation of
children in
at least two ways. First, child
molesters use “adult” obscenity to arouse, desensitize and instruct
their
victims. Second, many men arrested on
sexual exploitation of children charges begin their downward spiral by
viewing
not child pornography but “adult” obscenity
Many men
who are addicted to
“adult” obscenity also use prostitutes to act out their porn fueled
fantasies.
To the extent that addiction to pornography helps maintain the demand
for
prostitutes, it also helps maintain the demand for women and children
trafficked into prostitution.
If he
wants to protect and
nurture family life, he must also be tough on distributors of obscene
materials, because addiction to hardcore
pornography is
destroying countless marriages and because addiction to pornography is
crippling the ability of countless children to later make a marriage
work.
It
is
unfortunate that the Bush Administration did not do more in the “war
against
obscenity;” but to its credit, the Justice Department under President
Bush did
resume enforcement of federal obscenity laws against commercial
distributors of
“adult” obscenity. The Department also
established an Obscenity Prosecution Task Force, which is now headed by
a
former U.S. Attorney who isn’t afraid to take on commercial
distributors of
“adult” obscenity, if he gets the support he needs.
It
wouldn’t require a tremendous
allocation of investigative and prosecutorial resources to
substantially reduce
traffic in “adult” obscenity. But it
will require a commitment that David Ogden is not likely to want the
Justice
Department to now make.
ABOUT ROBERT PETERS…
Robert Peter is
President of Morality in Media. He has been a guest on
many television programs including three times on Larry King. He has
been a
diligent warrior in the fight against indecency for over two decades.
Headquartered
in New York City, Morality In Media (MIM) works through
constitutional means to curb traffic in illegal obscenity. MIM operates
the
www.obscenitycrimes.org website, where citizens can report possible
violations
of federal Internet obscenity laws.
Established
in New York City in 1962 to combat pornography, Morality In
Media works to inform citizens and public officials about the harms of
pornography and about what they can do through law to protect their
communities
and children. MIM also works to maintain standards of decency on TV and
in
other media. Contributions are tax-exempt.
Morality
In Media works through constitutional means to curb traffic in
illegal obscenity. It operates the www.obscenitycrimes.org website,
where
citizens can report possible violations of federal Internet obscenity
laws.
