The Senate report on the CIA’s harsh treatment of terrorist prisoners under Bush
There is little question that the Senate Intelligence Committee’s release of a report on harsh interrogation techniques during the Bush era is politically motivated. One way to tell is that Bob Kerrey, Vietnam vet and ex-Senator and governor of Nebraska and Democrat, is harshly critical of the process that led to the report. Read the whole thing, but here’s an excerpt from the beginning:
I regret having to write a piece that is critical of the Democratic members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Most of them are former colleagues and friends. I hope they will remain friends after reading this…
I do not need to read the report to know that the Democratic staff alone wrote it. The Republicans checked out early when they determined that their counterparts started out with the premise that the CIA was guilty and then worked to prove it.
When Congress created the intelligence committees in the 1970’s, the purpose was for people’s representatives to stand above the fray and render balanced judgments about this most sensitive aspect of national security. This committee departed from that high road and slipped into the same partisan mode that marks most of what happens on Capitol Hill these days.
I have written many times about the dilemma presented by harsh interrogation techniques that segue from uncomfortable to actual torture, where to draw the line, and whether they are effective (see this for one of my earliest pieces on the subject, and for more you can do a search for the word “torture” on this blog). Ever since the so-called War on Terror began in earnest, post 9/11, this debate has been ongoing.
So why this report, and why now? My hunch is that the goal is to take us back to the wonderful days when Bush was president and particularly the last couple of years of his second term, when it was a Bush-bashing festival every single day, and Democrats cast themselves as the principled heroes. It’s the same partisan fight over something that should be above partisanship. Haven’t we walked this same road before—many times before?:
This investigation marks a new low for congressional oversight of intelligence because of its naked partisanship and refusal to consider all relevant evidence. The report was written entirely by the committee’s Democratic staff. The investigation included no interviews ”” it is based only on a review of documents. Because the report lacks Republican co-authors or interviews of people who ran the enhanced-interrogation program, it has no credibility and amounts to a five-year, $50 million Democrat cherry-picking exercise to investigate the Bush administration.
This didn’t have to happen. There are congressional Republicans who have problems with the enhanced-interrogation program and wanted an honest, bipartisan assessment of it. This is why all but one Republican member of the Senate Intelligence Committee voted to approve the probe in March 2009. However, all of the committee’s GOP members withdrew their support six months later when it became clear that this inquiry would be a witch hunt against the Bush administration and the CIA and not a balanced, bipartisan investigation.
And what will this report tell us that we don’t already know? New details about enhanced-interrogation techniques and Democratic objections to them won’t be news. According to press leaks about the report, it will claim the program was poorly run and that CIA personnel exceeded their legal authority in running the program and lied about it to Congress and the White House. Such charges are hard to take seriously, because CIA officers accused in the report of improper and illegal activities were not interviewed by the committee’s staff investigators. Most of them were not even allowed to read the report ”” that privilege was limited to former CIA directors and deputy directors, and they were forced to sign non-disclosure agreements by the committee before they were given access to it.
Here’s a roundup of quotes about the report, to give you an idea what’s being said by many sources.
It’s a leading item in German news programs tonight, and there is no attempt to provide a dateline or any context. Also mentioned was the bind that some in Poland are in because of having cooperated with black sites. The Polish government, now in need of our military to protect itself from Putin, doesn’t seem to be giving in to the criticisms.
I expect we will feel like we are reading Davids Medienkritik once again. Thanks Dianne.
Once again democrats demonstrate that ideology supersedes their oaths of office or loyalty as Americans.
“[A]ll but one Republican member of the Senate Intelligence Committee voted to approve the probe in March 2009. However, all of the committee’s GOP members withdrew their support six months later when it became clear that this inquiry would be a witch hunt against the Bush administration and the CIA and not a balanced, bipartisan investigation.”
I can barely contain my disgust.
SHOUTING now, at the top of my aging lungs . . .
This was 2009, not 1959. These imbecile Republicans in 2009 were still that effing *clueless* as to what the Democrats were going to do???
Not effing rocket science, morons.
No longer shouting now, just quietly resigned . . .
They’re called the Stupid Party for a reason, you know.
We are finished.
——
KJV John 19:30,32-34 . . .
“When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. . . . Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs: But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.”
Knowing Cosmic Bob for a long time, his opposition to that report is quite a rebuke.
Bob is lots of things, but he is dead serious about national security and knows what we are up against.
DiFi should be ashamed of herself.
Wolf Blitzer of CNN asked her about the report leading to retribution against Americans overseas and allies and, in response she verbally attacked him. No shame evident, ideology trumps all and that is prima facie evidence of a knowing betrayal of her oath of office.
But its not just Feinstein, all the democrats on that committee are equally culpable in their betrayal of America. And in their silence which condones, the entire democrat leadership shares in that betrayal.
M J R:
What I don’t get is why they didn’t release a dissenting report.
Or maybe that would have been too much work.
DiFi should be ashamed of herself.
Ha. She’s probably in physical ecstasy, she’s so happy with herself.
Geoffrey Britain and others:
I addend an addendum with video of the Blitzer/Feinstein interview.
neo-neocon, 3:42 pm — “M J R: What I don’t get is why they didn’t release a dissenting report. Or maybe that would have been too much work.”
It certainly would have been principled and justified. But would it have been an efficacious use of their energy?
I mean, FoxNews would cover it; ElRushbo, Hannity, Levin, all would cover it, yea, shouting it from the rooftops; but would NBCABCCBSPBSNPRCNNetc cover it? Seems to me, the low information voter would be just as low information after the report is released as s/he would be before.
If a tree falls in the forest and all that.
It’s very discouraging, you know?
neo-neocon, 3:48 pm — “I addend an addendum with video of the Blitzer/Feinstein interview.”
Kewl! I like “addend” as a verb. [ smile ] [ poke ]
M J R:
Oops! I meant “I added an addendum…”.
But I think I’ll keep it the way it is 🙂 .
Torture, in principle, is wrong; but, so is premeditated murder (e.g. elective abortion) without cause. Not to mention the expansion of wars (e.g. regime change) and torture (e.g. assassination) policies under Obama; establishment of an Islamic state in Europe under Clinton; etc. The cognitive dissonance must be deafening. At least Republicans maintain an appearance and practice of acceding to international law and order, to civil and human rights.