I received this message from the National Religious Coalition Against Torture identifying certain Republican senators who might be persuaded to support Sen. McCain in opposing the White House’s Military Commissions Act of 2006 which, among other things, would authorize “secret CIA interrogation facilities around the world that have permission to use an ‘alternative set of interrogation procedures.’”

One of the Senators they identify as persuadable on this issue is Arlen Specter which is, I presume, why I received it. But now that I’m ensconsed in a true blue state, I have no Republican senator to bug. However, if one of these guys is your senator, and you feel strongly about this, you might consider registering your opinion with him.

Here’s the message in full:

Republican Senators Warner, Graham, and McCain have been stalwart in opposing the adminitration’s “Military Commissions Act of 2006,” S. 3861. As the floor action in the Senate looms in the week to come, these three Senators need the support of other Republican senators who will stand with them against the tremendous pressure being exerted by the administration to pass the president’s statute – authorizing secret CIA interrogation facilities around the world that have permission to use an “alternative set of interrogation procedures” (what most people would call torture, and all people would call brutal, degrading, and terrifying).

Four senators that could offer that Republican support on the Senate floor are Sen. Mike DeWine (Ohio); Sen. Chuck Hagel (Nebraska); Sen. Arlen Specter (Pennsylvania); and Sen. John Sununu (New Hampshire). This email from the National Religious Campaign Against Torture is being sent to you because you live in one of these four states, and could have a lasting impact on this legislation with your phone call. Get connected to your Senator’s Washington, DC office through the Capitol Switchboard at 202-225-3121.

Please encourage your senator to do the right thing. Tell your senator that you oppose the president’s “Military Commissions Act of 2006,” S. 3861. This legislation is on a fast-track and must be defeated, or at least slowed down. It will be debated on the Senate floor next week.

History will look back on the congressional actions on this proposed legislation either as the time when the U.S. abandoned statutory commitment to its long-held moral values for a shameful lesser standard, or as the time when Congress reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to its basic moral values. Here are some talking points you can use in your calls to your Senator or the Senator’s staff:

As a constituent and a person of religious faith, I urge the senator to reject the White House’s proposal, the “Military Commissions Act of 2006,” which would dangerously redefine the U.S. standard of conduct toward detainees.

This legislation would not only open the door to prisoner abuse by the CIA, it would violate the core principles of the Geneva Conventions.

U.S. adherence to its present standard for treatment of detainees:- makes our soldiers and citizens abroad safer from retaliatory and punitive treatment;- disempowers those who would make martyrs of the tortured and the abused; and- makes our nation safer and more secure.

Thank you for joining NRCAT, www.nrcat.org, in our efforts to abolish U.S.-sponsored torture now – without exceptions.

Click here to read detailed background information and analysis of the Administration’s Proposed “Military Commissions Act of 2006”.