According to a report by the Senate Armed Services Committee on December 11, 2008: ” ‘While the President’s order [to deny baseline protections to al-Qaeda and Taliban prisoners] stated that, as *a matter of policy, the United States Armed Forces shall continue to treat detainees humanely and, to the extent appropriate and consistent with military necessity, in a manner consistent with the principles of the Geneva Conventions,* the decision to replace well established military doctrine, i.e., legal compliance with the Geneva Conventions, with a policy subject to interpretation, impacted the treatment of detainees in U.S. custody.’ ”
– Jason Leopold, “Gonzales Memo Advised Bush How to Avoid War Crimes Charges,” PubRecord.org, June 13, 2009