I Walked With a Tyrant: Bob Barr in Haiti

Bob Barr: Libertarian Party presidential nominee, consultant for the American Civil Liberties Union, and…advisor to the brutal former dictator of Haiti?

A former U.S. congressman was among a group of American attorneys accompanying former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier as he spoke in the country's capital Friday.

Former Republican Congressman Bob Barr said he is not serving as Duvalier's attorney, but is in Port-au-Prince to consult, assist and be Duvalier's voice to the international community.

Barr represented Georgia's 7th District in the U. S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003, and was the Libertarian Party's presidential nominee in 2008. He currently practices law and runs a consulting firm based in Atlanta.

"We have been asked by the former president and his family to assist him in his efforts," Barr told reporters in Port-au-Prince….

Barr "will be representing" Duvalier "in bringing his message of hope to the world," the former Republican congressman's website says.

Amnesty International describes Baby Doc's atrocious human rights record here.

Update: CNN has replaced the story quoted above with a new article. So (a) that's why if you click through you'll see a rather different text, and (b) do go ahead and click, as the new piece includes more information on Duvalier's unexpected return to Haiti. It also includes some more quotes from Barr, who offers this unpersuasive riposte to the charges against the dictator: "I deal with allegations all the time. They are the cheapest commodity on the market."

Read some classic Amnesty "allegations" against Duvalier here [pdf].