Same as the old boss

It's becoming more and more clear that Obama really never had much of an issue with Bush and Cheney's torture regime. Scott Horton notes the announced replacement for Phil Carter at Detainee Affairs:

Few Washington developments in recent weeks establish the parameters of “change you can believe in” better than this: following the resignation of Phil Carter, the White House is reportedly prepared to tap William Lietzau as the new deputy assistant secretary of defense for detainee affairs. Lietzau served as an aide to William J. Haynes II, the David Addington protégé who was Donald Rumsfeld’s lawyer at the Pentagon. In this role, he played a central role in creating a harsh new environment for prisoners taken in the war on terror, including the crafting of rules for a military commission that were subsequently overturned by the Supreme Court.

Haynes probably belongs in prison, and his aides would be the last place any decent administration would look for such an appointee.

Horton links to a Spencer Ackerman article on the appointment, quoting some favorable opinions on Lietzau, but not doing anything to disturb the inference that Obama's administration prefers continuity to change when it comes to such issues.