Bush, Cheney et al may have sowed the seeds of their own downfall within the Patriot Act

In October of 2001 they amended 18 USC 2340A to include subsection (c), the provision that makes it a crime to conspire to commit torture.


18 USC § 2340A. Torture

(a) Offense.— Whoever outside the United States commits or attempts to commit torture shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both, and if death results to any person from conduct prohibited by this subsection, shall be punished by death or imprisoned for any term of years or for life.

(b) Jurisdiction.— There is jurisdiction over the activity prohibited in subsection (a) if—
(1) the alleged offender is a national of the United States; or
(2) the alleged offender is present in the United States, irrespective of the nationality of the victim or alleged offender.

(c) Conspiracy.— A person who conspires to commit an offense under this section shall be subject to the same penalties (other than the penalty of death) as the penalties prescribed for the offense, the commission of which was the object of the conspiracy.

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/18/usc_sec_18_0000234...

Source
(Added Pub. L. 103–236, title V, § 506(a), Apr. 30, 1994, 108 Stat. 463; amended Pub. L. 103–322, title VI, § 60020, Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 1979; Pub. L. 107–56, title VIII, § 811(g), Oct. 26, 2001, 115 Stat. 381.)

Amendments

2001—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 107–56 added subsec. (c).
1994—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–322 inserted “punished by death or” before “imprisoned for any term of years or for life”.

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode18/usc_sec...

See section 811(g) of the Patriot Act - Penalties for Terrorist Conspiracies. (page 381 of the pdf) http://www.selectagent.gov/resources/USApatriotAct.pdf