Obama open to prosecution, probe of interrogations

[RunningOnMT]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/obama_interrogation_memos

By JENNIFER LOVEN, AP White House Correspondent Jennifer Loven, Ap White House Correspondent – Tue Apr 21, 1:25 pm ET
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama left the door open Tuesday to prosecuting Bush administration officials who devised the legal authority for gruesome terror-suspect interrogations, saying the United States lost "our moral bearings" with use of the tactics.

The question of whether to bring charges against those who devised justification for the methods "is going to be more of a decision for the attorney general within the parameters of various laws and I don't want to prejudge that," Obama said. The president discussed the continuing issue of terrorism-era interrogation tactics with reporters as he finished an Oval Office meeting with visiting King Abdullah II of Jordan.

Obama also said he could support a congressional investigation into the Bush-era terrorist detainee program, but only under certain conditions, such as if it were done on a bipartisan basis. He said he worries about the impact that high-intensity, politicized hearings in Congress could have on the government's efforts to cope with terrorism.

The president had said earlier that he didn't want to see prosecutions of the CIA agents and interrogators who took part in waterboarding and other harsh interrogation tactics, so long as they acted within parameters spelled out by government superiors who held that such practices were legal at the time.

But the administration's stance on Bush administration lawyers who actually wrote the memos approving these tactics has been less clear and Obama declined to make it so. "There are a host of very complicated issues involved," Obama said.

White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said in a television interview over the weekend that the administration does not support prosecutions for "those who devised policy." Later, White House aides said that he was referring to CIA superiors who ordered the interrogations, not the Justice Department officials who wrote the legal memos allowing them.

The president took a question on the volatile subject for the first time since he ordered the Justice Department to release top-secret Bush-era memos that gave the government's first full accounting of the CIA's use of waterboarding — a form of simulated drowning — and other harsh methods criticized as torture. The previously classified memos were released Thursday, over the objections of many in the intelligence community. CIA Director Leon Panetta had pressed for heavier censorship when they were released, but the memos were put out with only light redactions.

Far from putting the matter in the past, the move has resulted in Obama being buffeted by increased pressure from both sides.

Republican lawmakers and former CIA chiefs have criticized Obama's decision, contending that revealing the limits of interrogation techniques will hamper the effectiveness of interrogators and critical U.S. relationships with foreign intelligence services.

The release also has appeared to intensify calls for further investigations of the Bush-era terrorist treatment program and for prosecutions of those responsible for any techniques that crossed the line into torture.

Obama banned all such techniques days after taking office. But members of Congress have continued to seek the release of information about the early stages of the U.S. response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terror under former President George W. Bush. Lawsuits have been brought, seeking the same information.

Obama said an investigation might be acceptable "outside of the typical hearing process" and with the participation of "independent participants who are above reproach." This, he said, could help ensure that any investigation would be a tool to learn, not to provide partisan advantage to one side or another.

"That would probably be a more sensible approach to take," Obama said. "I'm not saying that it should be done, I'm saying that if you've got a choice."

The president made clear that his preference would be not to revisit the era extensively.

"As a general view, I do think we should be looking forward, not back," Obama said. "I do worry about this getting so politicized that we cannot function effectively and it hampers our ability to carry out critical national security operations."

[armedandsafe]

So, if they are going to investigate all who were involved in authorizing the techniques, are they going to include every congress person who approved such?

I REALLY hope so, as Ms Nancy (sack of)Pelosi was in the forefront. Every congress critter who signed off as OK with this should be supoened and made to testify under oath. I don't have a cite, but have read that there were some who complained at the time that the techniques were "not harsh enough."

Pops

[swiftman]

They have release all of this to the newspapers, top secret info , so our enemies can now use it against us for years to come, but failed to mention that only three people were water boarded and this helped stop a attack on LA, but why confuse the cool aid drinkers with any facts.

[swiftman]

If any of this leads to another attack on this country or any citizen or soldier is killed by one of the released prisinors, just who will they try to blame then.

[Trouble 45-70]

Discovery should be interesting. They might want to subpeana me too. I called and wrote my 3 congresscritters giving them permision to do this when absolutly needed as long as they don't kill them, break bones, or cause excessive bleeding. I still think water boarding is ok and can be done with bacon grease if needed. I'll give up one batch of gravey if they need some of mine. I don't particulary wan't to die because some damn fool muslim terorist dosn't like my religeon or nationality. If we can't question our killer wantabees, then we need to stop taking prisoners. Too bad we can't handcuff the Gitmo guys to our congresscritters seeing as the think so highly of them.

[Blackhawk Dave]

I really hope they prosecute every one...so that people will see what the people in power are truly like, what you get with the ultra-left in power. It will relegate them to a fringe party.

[alhefner]

Though I disagreed with using some torture techniques from the beginning, mostly due to our country's stance in the international front, the prosecution of those responsible should be the top of the heap and not the middle or bottom levels.

In other words, if "war crimes" were committed, those crimes were approved and instituted by the president, vice president, secretary of state, and EVERY member of congress who gave a "yes" vote to those methods. Those are the ones that should be prosecuted if any prosecution is to go forward.

[XShooter]

Originally Posted by RunningOnMT

Republican lawmakers and former CIA chiefs have criticized Obama's decision, contending that revealing the limits of interrogation techniques will hamper the effectiveness of interrogators and critical U.S. relationships with foreign intelligence services.

And that's why de-classifying those documents (without doing a more thorough job with a black "sharpie") was a really stupid thing for Obama to do! It's pretty hard to get a guy to talk when he knows you can only pour water on him for a maximum of 40 seconds, a maximum of 5 times a day, and no longer than 5 days in a row. DUH! Oh wait, it doesn't matter, because Obama just made it illegal to interrogate anyway. What do we do now? Bring the prisoner coffee and a cheese cake?

These terrorists ought to thank their lucky stars they weren't captured by some other countries who'd use thumbscrews and 24volt batteries on them! Compared to what other countries do, America does not torture it's prisoners. This is still the best country on earth to get caught as a terrorist in! And it just got even better! Maybe that's why they are all moving here?

[Lori Mick]

Did ya'll read the other article with what Keys said? This is all staged so we DO get attacked and then they'll have an excuse to cancel the 2012 elections.....

All this chit, early in the morning....just makes me crazy!

I'm gonna head out of town for the weekend to get away from it all!

[45nut]

Lori,

Where is the article for Alan's remarks??

[ampaterry]

Jack Bauer for president -
He KNOWS how to deal with terrorists.

[Trouble 45-70]

Lori, a cup of coffee before reading the latest should be a big help. I reccomend Community Coffee.

[Marlin T]

[FONT='Times New Roman','serif']MORE DECLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS ON TORTURE[/FONT][FONT='Times New Roman','serif']

The Senate Intelligence Committee released a newly declassified account of the opinions issued by the Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel concerning CIA's interrogation and detention program during the Bush Administration. The document is neutral, dispassionate, and maybe a little dull, particularly when compared with the gruesomely detailed contents of some of the OLC opinions themselves, on which it does not render any moral or legal judgment. Remarkably, release of this Senate report was blocked last year when the Bush Administration National Security Council refused to declassify it. But now it, and much more, has been released. See "Declassified Narrative Describing the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel's Opinions on the CIA's Detention and Interrogation Program" (pdf), released April 22, 2009.

Another newly declassified report, from the Senate Armed Services Committee, does not shrink from drawing conclusions. "The report represents a condemnation of both the Bush administration's interrogation policies and of senior administration officials who attempted to shift the blame for abuse--such as that seen at Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo Bay, and Afghanistan--to low ranking soldiers. Claims, such as that made by former Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz that detainee abuses could be chalked up to the unauthorized acts of a 'few bad apples,' were simply false," said Sen. Carl Levin in an April 21 floor statement introducing the report (large pdf).

Does torture work? Preempting and perhaps foreclosing an argument advanced by former Vice President Cheney and others, DNI Dennis C. Blair said in an April 21 statement that "The information gained from these techniques was valuable in some instances, but there is no way of knowing whether the same information could have been obtained through other means. The bottom line is these techniques have hurt our image around the world, the damage they have done to our interests far outweighed whatever benefit they gave us and they are not essential to our national security," he said.[/FONT]

[Trouble 45-70]

Information gained from coersive interogation (I refuse to call it torture because those it is used on are as good as new soon after istead of dead and mangled beyond all recognition) would not be acted upon unless it was confirmed by other sources.