We had two powerful reactions this week after the CIA admitted to destroying 92 videotapes of interrogations that may involve torture and the Justice Department released several of the legal manifestos that former President Bush used to justify mangling the Constitution after Sept. 11, 2001. We were horrified to be reminded that the nation still has not plumbed the depths of the Bush administration’s abuses. At the same time, it was a relief to see President Obama beginning to make good on his promise of greater transparency.

While the CIA’s admission was made in legal proceedings, the government voluntarily released the Justice Department memos.

A lot more transparency is needed. The documents do not include memos justifying harsh interrogations nor those justifying Bush’s decision to authorise illegal eavesdropping on Americans.

Patrick Leahy, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is holding a hearing into the creation of a bipartisan inquiry into the range of Bush’s abuses and has raised the possibility of granting immunity to witnesses. We are sceptical about immunity, but we are looking forward to hearing a careful debate about how to proceed toward the essential goal: providing Americans with as much truth and accountability as possible about their government’s actions.