Bush: Kyoto treaty would have "wrecked" US economy News
Bush: Kyoto treaty would have "wrecked" US economy

[JURIST] In a White House interview with Danish television [recorded video via DR] that aired Thursday, US President George W. Bush said that agreeing to the requirements of the Kyoto Protocol [text] on climate change would have "wrecked" the US economy. Bush noted that other "big polluters" like India and China have also refused to accept the treaty's terms. AP has more. Meanwhile British Prime Minister Tony Blair [official website], who plans to discuss issues related to greenhouse gas emissions at the upcoming G8 meeting [official website], has said that the US cannot be persuaded to accept the Kyoto treaty conditions. As G8 host and chair, Blair is debating whether to release a final statement at the summit that excludes the US on environmental issues. The move would be politically risky but it might coax the US into more extended debate about greenhouse gas emissions. The Guardian has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

38 Santee Sioux hanged by US for rebellion

On December 26, 1862, 38 Santee Sioux men were hanged in a mass execution for their roles in a rebellion against US authorities in Minnesota which left hundreds dead and made refugees of some 40,000 white settlers. Government annuities promised under a treaty with the Sioux had failed to arrive on schedule and credit for purchases was not advanced in the meantime, threatening the tribe with starvation. The Santee Sioux Tribe's members were deported first to South Dakota and ultimately to Nebraska, where they remain today. Learn more about the 1862 Minnesota Sioux Rebellion.

Louis XVI put on trial during French Revolution

On December 26, 1792, Romain de Sèze, a defense attorney for deposed King Louis XVI, presented a defense of his client. The former King was on trial before a French Revolutionary court on thirty-three charges, including treason and other crimes against the state. He was convicted on January 15, 1793 executed by guillotine on the following January 21.