John Yoo responds to democrat smears of the CIA....

[2aguy]

I know...there are several threads about the democrats smearing the CIA and redefining harsh interrogation techniques as torture.....but this is a response from the man who looked at the legalities and helped make policy. It didn't seem right to let his response get buried in another thread....

John Yoo A torture report for the dustbin - NY Daily News

As a Justice Department lawyer who worked on the legality of the interrogation methods in 2002, I believed that the federal law prohibiting torture allowed the CIA to use interrogation methods that did not cause injury — including, in extraordinary cases, waterboarding — because of the grave threat to the nation’s security in the months after the 9/11 attacks.

I was swayed by the fact that our military used waterboarding in training thousands of its own soldiers without harm, and that the CIA would use the technique only on top Al Qaeda leaders thought to have actionable information on pending plots.

CIA officers have said that they used waterboarding on only three terrorist leaders, and that the interrogations yielded valuable intelligence on Al Qaeda.

I would want to know if they lied to me and other Bush administration officials, as the Feinstein report asserts. If it turned out that the facts on which I based my advice were wrong, I would be willing to change my opinion of the interrogation methods. As economist John Maynard Keynes reportedly said to a critic, “When my information changes, I alter my conclusions. What do you do, sir?”

But given its profoundly partisan tenor and fiercely disputed details, I have significant reason to doubt this report’s veracity.

Take, for example, an absolutely critical fact related to the utility of enhanced interrogation tactics — about how the U.S. tracked down and ultimately killed Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden.

According to several former CIA directors, harsh interrogations and waterboarding of Al Qaeda leaders such as Khalid Sheikh Mohammed allowed U.S. analysts to identify Bin Laden’s courier (he would not use electronic communications). Tracking the courier then led us to Bin Laden’s hideout.

The Feinstein report alleges that other sources had already provided the name of the courier independently.
But the CIA’s rebuttal — signed by Obama’s appointee Director John Brennan — makes clear this information “was insufficient to distinguish him from many other Bin Laden associates until additional information from detainees put it into context and allowed CIA to better understand his true role and potential in the hunt for Bin Laden.”

 

[JoeB131]

John Yoo, Cheney and the rest of them should be shipped off to the Hague for international war crimes trials.

 

[2aguy]

John Yoo, Cheney and the rest of them should be shipped off to the Hague for international war crimes trials.

Hey, smart guy....the democrats knew it all as well....they knew about all the techniques and signed off on them...that is why they are saying Bush was lied to....because they agreed to all of it.....but they couldn't help trying to smear, Bush, the CIA and the incoming Republicans.....but as this goes along....people are going to want to know what pelosi knew, what feinstein knew........and why they approved it......

 

[2aguy]

Jose Rodriguez....he briefed the democrats on everything.....

CIA Rodriguez Democrats knew enhanced interrogation

Democrats are trying to make political hay out of the recently released and highly partisan “torture report” even though they were briefed on enhanced interrogation techniques as far back as 2002.

Former CIA official Jose Rodriguez, who oversaw counterterrorism from 2002 to 2004, appeared on Fox News Sunday today. When asked directly by host Chris Wallace who knew what and when, Rodriguez was explicit:

Brendan Bordelon of National Review:

Former CIA Torture Head: Nancy Pelosi, Top Dems ‘Knew Exactly What We Were Doing’

“These people were fully aware of all of the techniques that were given to us and approved by the Office of Legal Counsel at Justice,” Rodriguez continued, saying that neither Nancy Pelosi nor other Democrats — with the exception of then–California congresswoman Jane Harman — “ever objected to the techniques at all.”

Rodriguez alleged that some lawmakers, such as Democratic West Virginia senator Jay Rockefeller, actually pushed the CIA to be even harsher. “All of these people knew exactly what we were doing,” he said.

Watch the exchange here:

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

John Yoo, Cheney and the rest of them should be shipped off to the Hague for international war crimes trials.

Yeah, that'll make the muslims love you. Idiot.

 

[2aguy]

As I pointed out in one of the other threads on the democrat smear....

The muslim terrorists attacked the U.S.S. Kohl, the blew up the Kobar towers, they tried to blow up the world trade center....and we handled those attacks exactly like the libs want future attacks handled....as a purely law enforcement issue....

And then they flew 2 jets into the towers of the World Trade Center and killed 3,000 innocent people.....

libs never, ever learn.....

 

[Katzndogz]

Libs do learn. They were profoundly disappointed at the massive response to 911. They learned and are determined that such a response never happens again.

 

[2aguy]

Libs do learn. They were profoundly disappointed at the massive response to 911. They learned and are determined that such a response never happens again.

I stand corrected....excellent point....

 

[SAYIT]

John Yoo, Cheney and the rest of them should be shipped off to the Hague for international war crimes trials.

Yeah, that'll make the muslims love you. Idiot.

But only for a long as it takes them to chop off his head.

 

[JoeB131]

John Yoo, Cheney and the rest of them should be shipped off to the Hague for international war crimes trials.

Yeah, that'll make the muslims love you. Idiot.

I don't care abou the Muslims.

What I want is to make an example out of these guys so the next guy who decides to soil America's reputation by torturing people will think "I'd better not."

 

[JoeB131]

As I pointed out in one of the other threads on the democrat smear....

The muslim terrorists attacked the U.S.S. Kohl, the blew up the Kobar towers, they tried to blow up the world trade center....and we handled those attacks exactly like the libs want future attacks handled....as a purely law enforcement issue....

And then they flew 2 jets into the towers of the World Trade Center and killed 3,000 innocent people.....

libs never, ever learn.....

Okay, let's look at that list.

The USS Cole (spell it right) was in an Arab port.

The Khobar Towers were in an Arab country.

Since 1980, we have occupied, invaded or bombed no less than 15 Islamic countries. Not to mention supporting the criminal Zionist occupation of Palestine.

Now, maybe the best way to handle this is as a military issue. Okay. Fine.

Let's tax the rich at 93%, have a draft with no exemptions, ration key goods for the war effort, just like we did in World War II, if it's that fucking important to you.

 

[JoeB131]

Hey, smart guy....the democrats knew it all as well....they knew about all the techniques and signed off on them...that is why they are saying Bush was lied to....because they agreed to all of it.....but they couldn't help trying to smear, Bush, the CIA and the incoming Republicans.....but as this goes along....people are going to want to know what pelosi knew, what feinstein knew........and why they approved it......

Or they just trusted Bush to not abuse the situation, which of course, he totally did.

I think the Democrats were pretty cowardly in giving Bush unlimited latitude in fighting the war. Particularly since what he did probably made matters worse. We went from having almost universal sympathy to being universally despised.

 

[2aguy]

Joe....

Or they just trusted Bush to not abuse the situation, which of course, he totally did.

The democrats got the same information as Bush.....and they signed off on all the techniques.....now they don't want anyone to ask that question....what did they know and when did they know it.......

You forgot the 1st attempt to blow up the World Trade Center that was prosecuted as a law enforcement issue......and they came back....

We don't need a draft, we just have to fight the war and not give the countries back after we win....like obama did, and we don't have to raise taxes....we just have to cut the size of the government and reduce spending....and lower taxes...lowering tax rates generates more money, not less...World War 2 was a much bigger war...with a bigger footprint against enemies with huge standing armies......we need to fight wars with intelligence....not search warrants.....

 

[Billo_Really]

John Yoo is an inhuman scumbag who should be getting his salad tossed in a federal prison instead of making comments on how he deliberately tried to re-define common GC terms on torture, so the BA would not get prosecuted for those crimes they were about to commit.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

John Yoo, Cheney and the rest of them should be shipped off to the Hague for international war crimes trials.

Yeah, that'll make the muslims love you. Idiot.

I don't care abou the Muslims.

What I want is to make an example out of these guys so the next guy who decides to soil America's reputation by torturing people will think "I'd better not."

If the choice is between protecting American lives or wetting your pants thinking that a bad guy might be kept awake and asked questions, I'll side with Dick Cheney everytime.

Obama's idea of just killing all of them, rather than subjecting them to loud music, has it's advantages, but I'm surprised you think his way is better.

 

[JoeB131]

The democrats got the same information as Bush.....and they signed off on all the techniques.....now they don't want anyone to ask that question....what did they know and when did they know it.......

You forgot the 1st attempt to blow up the World Trade Center that was prosecuted as a law enforcement issue......and they came back....

Well, it's a big stretch to try to link the two attacks... but okay.

Point is, they went along with the torture, but Bush did the Torture. BUsh did the insane invasion of Iraq that had nothing to do with Al Qaeda, but he just wanted to get back at Saddam for humiliating his daddy.

We don't need a draft, we just have to fight the war and not give the countries back after we win....like obama did, and we don't have to raise taxes....we just have to cut the size of the government and reduce spending....and lower taxes...lowering tax rates generates more money, not less...World War 2 was a much bigger war...with a bigger footprint against enemies with huge standing armies......we need to fight wars with intelligence....not search warrants.....

Except that those countries aren't ours to keep. If we liberated them, and not conquered them, then we have to give them back to the people that live there.

The real problem is, ISIS and the Taliban would probably win elections if people were allowed to vote their conscience. You can't go ahead and say you are bringing people democracy, but only if they vote the way you want them to.

In WWII, we made no such illusions. Our goal was to utterly defeat Germany and Japan and then and only then hand them back to their people after they were fairly clear what they had done was wrong.

 

[JoeB131]

If the choice is between protecting American lives or wetting your pants thinking that a bad guy might be kept awake and asked questions, I'll side with Dick Cheney everytime.

Obama's idea of just killing all of them, rather than subjecting them to loud music, has it's advantages, but I'm surprised you think his way is better.

Except torturing doesn't make us any safer. What is pretty clear now is that the guys we tortured just said whatever they thought their interrogators wanted to hear, like when KSM said one of his operatives was going to Montana to recruit African-American Muslims.

 

[alanbmx123]

As I pointed out in one of the other threads on the democrat smear....

The muslim terrorists attacked the U.S.S. Kohl, the blew up the Kobar towers, they tried to blow up the world trade center....and we handled those attacks exactly like the libs want future attacks handled....as a purely law enforcement issue....

And then they flew 2 jets into the towers of the World Trade Center and killed 3,000 innocent people.....

libs never, ever learn.....

Okay, let's look at that list.

The USS Cole (spell it right) was in an Arab port.

The Khobar Towers were in an Arab country.

Since 1980, we have occupied, invaded or bombed no less than 15 Islamic countries. Not to mention supporting the criminal Zionist occupation of Palestine.

Now, maybe the best way to handle this is as a military issue. Okay. Fine.

Let's tax the rich at 93%, have a draft with no exemptions, ration key goods for the war effort, just like we did in World War II, if it's that fucking important to you.

Why is taxing the rich and starting the draft always where you lib's go? To have another Vietnam? And protests in the street? Our volunteer military just pisses you pansy ass liberals off to no end doesn't it?


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[Mad_Cabbie]

No one here was smeared; the CIA actually did the things listed in the report.

How does that constitute "smearing?"

 

[Mad_Cabbie]

Joe....

Or they just trusted Bush to not abuse the situation, which of course, he totally did.

The democrats got the same information as Bush.....and they signed off on all the techniques.....now they don't want anyone to ask that question....what did they know and when did they know it.......

You forgot the 1st attempt to blow up the World Trade Center that was prosecuted as a law enforcement issue......and they came back....

We don't need a draft, we just have to fight the war and not give the countries back after we win....like obama did, and we don't have to raise taxes....we just have to cut the size of the government and reduce spending....and lower taxes...lowering tax rates generates more money, not less...World War 2 was a much bigger war...with a bigger footprint against enemies with huge standing armies......we need to fight wars with intelligence....not search warrants.....

Look, neither George Bush nor Barack Obama ever had intentions of "keeping" any of the countries we bombed the shit out of.

Get your head out of your ass.