CIA DETAINEE AND TORTURE PROGRAM, THE TORTURE MEMOS, BUSHS EXECUTIVE ORDER 13440, AND LIES, LIES, LIES Senate Intelligence Committee Study on CIA Detention and Interrogation Program Eight months after voting to release parts of a 6,000 page Senate Intelligence Committee study on a CIA program on detainees torture during the Bush administration, the SSCI released a 525-page portion that consists of key findings and an executive summary of the full report. NO!! President Obama Didnt Torture Detainees Held By The CIA!!! Finally The TRUTH Is Out! It Was The Bush Administration, Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice, Hayden, Yoo, Rizzo, etc. Republicans wanted a scandal? Well here it is! I love that President Obama has now been exonerated from accusations, that he too did torture detainees in his administration and that he had the foresight to allow this Executive summary of the report from the CIA, be released. Im sure the Republican controlled Congress wasnt expecting this. Checkmate again! Ive been stating this from the very first time he was accused of doing torture in his administration. But folks just bail on President Obama for the silliest nonsense Ive ever seen in my life, when all of us have suffered from voters not casting votes in 2010 and 2014!!! And before anyone goes off of rhetoric and starts asking why hasnt the President prosecuted anyone? The President doesnt prosecute anyone. He is not a legal authority in any of the Executive branch agencies that engage in policing, investigations, or going after criminal activity. But will address the legal actions that could be taken later in this post. ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● SENATE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE STUDY The following link and excerpts below, give evidence that President ended the torture program, and it was authorized by former President Bush. Senate Intelligence Committee Study on CIA Detention and Interrogation Program feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=dce63826-5f14-4975-9617-a4e6bd7527cb Here is the full Senate Intelligence Committee’s Study on CIA Detention and Interrogation Program on pdf: intelligence.senate.gov/study2014/sscistudy1.pdf The study’s 20 findings and conclusions can be grouped into four central themes, each of which is supported extensively in the Executive Summary: ● The CIA’s “enhanced interrogation techniques” were not effective. ● The CIA provided extensive inaccurate information about the operation of the program and its effectiveness to policymakers and the public. ● The CIA’s management of the program was inadequate and deeply flawed. ● The CIA program was far more brutal than the CIA represented to policymakers and the American public. The CIA’s “enhanced interrogation techniques” were not effective.The CIA provided extensive inaccurate information about the operation of the program and its effectiveness to policymakers and the public.The CIA’s management of the program was inadequate and deeply flawed.The CIA program was far more brutal than the CIA represented to policymakers and the American public. Here are the documents that were released: Additional Views: intelligence.senate.gov/study2014/sscistudy2.pdf Minority & Additional Minority Views: intelligence.senate.gov/study2014/sscistudy3.pdf Executive Summary of the Senate Intelligence Committee’s Study of the CIA’s Detention and Interrogation Program feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/files/serve?File_id=7c85429a-ec38-4bb5-968f-289799bf6d0e&SK=D500C4EBC500E1D256BA519211895909 SSCI Study: Findings and Conclusions feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/files/serve?File_id=7c85429a-ec38-4bb5-968f-289799bf6d0e&SK=D500C4EBC500E1D256BA519211895909 SSCI Study: Additional Views feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/files/serve?File_id=25a4d18c-bdf2-408a-80fe-3dabda6695fa&SK=B4E2E153CCFB72B3C9300F7803AF8755 Timeline of the CIA detention and interrogation program feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/files/serve?File_id=9872cc03-b172-42a4-92bf-14c2ddb3d5e0&SK=E7E9BA96D0721A344127F303027BD973 Key dates related to the study feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/files/serve?File_id=7eb4b619-9244-44b0-b4bb-2cc6b15db025&SK=2DEA6A271F3B8CA804AAE472BD5B53EE Frequently asked questions feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/files/serve?File_id=c8983c02-ba28-4ddd-8e03-e9aac5b3b796&SK=680EEE139651482306BC38FF4A905AB0 Feinstein floor statement feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=d2677a34-2d91-4583-92a4-391f68ceae46 One excerpt from the study shows that CIA and other White House officials officials were afraid to brief former Secretary of State Colin Powell on the program because if he found out he would blow his stack. So the program was hidden from him. ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● CIA FACT SHEET AND RESPONSE TO SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE REPORT The CIA also released a response to the Executive Summary on the Detention and Interrogation Program as evidenced in the link below. CIA Fact Sheet Regarding the SSCI Study on the Former Detention and Interrogation Program https://cia.gov/news-information/press-releases-statements/2014-press-releases-statements/cia-fact-sheet-ssci-study-on-detention-interrogation-program.html An excerpt from the above link provides more evidence on who is responsible for the torture program. The Detention and Interrogation Program Ended in 2009 and Will Not Be Renewed at CIA: President Obama ended the detention and interrogation program nearly six years ago in 2009.The use of Enhanced Interrogation Techniques (EITs) by CIA ended in December 2007, and was subsequently prohibited by an Executive Order issued by President Obama when he took office in January 2009.The President also directed that CIA no longer operate detention facilities and banned the use of all interrogation techniques that are not in the Army Field Manual for those held in U.S. custody or under the effective control of the United States in any armed conflict.It is Director Brennan’s resolute intention to ensure that Agency officers scrupulously adhere to these directives, which the Director fully supports. History: The detention and interrogation program was authorized by President George W. Bush six days after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, reviewed and determined to be lawful by the Justice Department, and implemented by the CIA.The program was one part of a global counter-terrorism effort undertaken by CIA to dismantle al-Qa’ida and prevent another mass-casualty strike on American soil. Here is that Executive order that President Obama issued to end torture of detainees. Presidential Executive Order 13491 -- Ensuring Lawful Interrogations whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/EnsuringLawfulInterrogations The following is an excerpt from that Executive order: Section 1. Revocation. Executive Order 13440 of July 20, 2007, is revoked. All executive directives, orders, and regulations inconsistent with this order, including but not limited to those issued to or by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from September 11, 2001, to January 20, 2009, concerning detention or the interrogation of detained individuals, are revoked to the extent of their inconsistency with this order. Heads of departments and agencies shall take all necessary steps to ensure that all directives, orders, and regulations of their respective departments or agencies are consistent with this order. Upon request, the Attorney General shall provide guidance about which directives, orders, and regulations are inconsistent with this order. Bush signed Executive order 13340, that says Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions, which prohibits “mutilation, cruel treatment and torture,” does not apply to Qaeda or Taliban captives. Here are more responses by the CIA to the Senate Intelligence Committee’s Study of the CIA’s Detention and Interrogation Program. CIAs June 2013 Response to the SSCI Study on the Former Minority & Additional Minority Views https://cia.gov/library/reports/index.html or access the pdf https://cia.gov/mobile/news/2014/CIAs_June2013_Response_to_the_SSCI_Study_on_the_Former_Detention_and_Interrogation_Program.pdf Statement from Director Brennan on the SSCI Study on the Former Detention and Interrogation Program https://cia.gov/news-information/press-releases-statements/2014-press-releases-statements/statement-from-director-brennan-on-ssci-study-on-detention-interrogation-program.html Here is an excerpt from the statement of CIA Director Brennan: As part of the CIA’s global effort to dismantle al-Qa’ida and to prevent future terrorist attacks, the Agency was directed by President Bush six days after 9/11 to carry out a program to detain terrorist suspects around the world. Certain detainees were subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques (EITs), which the Department of Justice determined at the time to be lawful and which were duly authorized by the Bush Administration. These techniques, which were last used by the CIA in December 2007, subsequently were prohibited by an Executive Order issued by President Obama when he took office in January 2009. ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE / SECRETARY OF STATE The Department of Justice, during the Bush administration, gave the White House the legal authority they could utilize to be able to conduct the Bush sanctioned CIA Detention and Interrogation Program. A memo issued by Jay S. Bybee, the head of the Justice Departments Office of Legal Counsel, to John Rizzo, Acting General Counsel of the C.I.A. at the time, gives the C.I.A. after-the-fact authority to use harsh interrogation techniques. This was only after John Yoo, Deputy Assistant U.S. Attorney General in the Office of Legal Counsel, Department of Justice (OLC), had consulted with him. Memorandum for John Rizzo, Acting General Counsel, Central Intelligence Agency, from Jay S. Bybee, Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel, Re: Interrogation of al Qaeda Operative (Aug. 1, 2002) justice.gov/olc/docs/memo-bybee2002.pdf In fact the entire timeline of the Torture Memos with linked to each one, from the first few weeks after attack on the towers in New York up until President Obama revoked President Bushs executive order, can be accessed on the DOJ website here: justice.gov/olc/olc-foia-electronic-reading-room One of those memos gave the Bush administration the legal authority it could use to detain U.S. Citizens, always erroneously attributed to President Obama. Memorandum for Daniel J. Bryant, Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legislative Affairs, from John C. Yoo, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel, Re: Applicability of 18 U.S.C. § 4001(a) to Military Detention of United States Citizens (June 27, 2002) justice.gov/olc/docs/memodetentionuscitizens06272002.pdf Before the release of the study by the Senate Intelligence Committee, Attorney General Eric Holder had held investigations into the torture of detainees and concluded on August 30, 2012, that the Inspector Generals report on the CIA sanctioned Bush program he was given, did not have enough evidence of the program, to go after anyone. The CIA only fully co-operated with the Obama White House, and the Attorney General after pressure, but this was well after the investigation had been concluded by the DOJ and well before this latest Senate Intelligence Committee study. Statement of Attorney General Eric Holder on Closure of Investigation into the Interrogation of Certain Detainees, Thursday, August 30, 2012. justice.gov/opa/pr/statement-attorney-general-eric-holder-closure-investigation-interrogation-certain-detainees Here is Secretary of State John Kerrys statement on the CIA SSCI release: state.gov/secretary/remarks/2014/12/234844.htm ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● BUSH ADMINISTRATION PLAYERS Though the Senate Intelligence Committee’s Study shows that former President Bush was not briefed on the program for four years, not until 2006, he was touting the program continually in press conferences from that point on. In his memoirs he officially stated that it was he who authorized the torture program. In 2006, when the study from the Senate Intelligence Committee implied Bush was first told about the program, he held several press conference and continually stated vehemently that this torture program was necessary and the best tool to gather intelligence. In one of those press conferences, he spoke on the transfer of high value detainees from the CIA program to Guantanamo Bay and made claims that the CIA program garnered intelligence from some of the detainees that is now known noy to be true. High-Value Detainees Moved to Gitmo; Bush Proposes Detainee Legislation defense.gov/news/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=721 By Gerry J. Gilmore American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Sept. 6, 2006 – President Bush today announced the transfer of 14 high-value terrorist detainees from CIA custody to confinement at the Defense Department’s detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and that he asked Congress to authorize military commissions to try them. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Abu Zubaydah, Ramzi bin al-Shibh and 11 other accused terrorists previously held by the CIA will be held in Cuba and await trial, Bush told a White House audience that included some family members of those killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States. Mohammed is believed to be the mastermind behind the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Bush said. He added that Abu Zubaydah smuggled al Qaeda leaders out of Afghanistan at the start of the U.S. military action there in late 2001and that bin al-Shibh helped Mohammed plan the 9/11 attacks. While in CIA custody Zubaydah provided information that led to the capture of Mohammed and bin al-Shibh, Bush said. Other information Zubaydah provided was used to help stop a planned terrorist attack inside the United States, Bush said. Until then, he said, the U.S. had no previous information that that attack was afoot. Others within the group of terrorists formerly held by the CIA who are now at Guantanamo are believed to be responsible for the attack on the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000 and the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, Bush said. Another excerpt displays that Bush certainly knew about the program and wanted Congress to pass legislation to grant immunity to soldiers who has either guarded or questioned detainees. Bush also said he asked Congress today to protect U.S. servicemembers who guard or question prisoners from possible improper prosecution under currently ill-defined rules. Geneva Convention provisions under Common Article 3 that describe proper and improper conduct with prisoners “are vague and undefined, and each could be interpreted in different ways by an American or foreign judges,” Bush said. As it currently stands, some military and intelligence personnel involved in capturing and questioning terrorists could be at risk of prosecution under the War Crimes Act, when all they’d done was to perform their jobs properly and professionally, Bush said. Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made the decision along with other officials to not brief President Bush. But former Vice President Dick Cheney said that Bush knew everything about the program in a December 10, 2014 interview. foxnews/politics/2014/12/11/cheney-defends-cia-interrogation-techniques-calls-senate-report-flawed/ In that Fox news interview, Cheney denied Bush was kept out of the loop. He said the then-president was in fact an integral part of the program and he had to approve it. Asked if Bush knew specific details of how specific interrogations were being conducted, Cheney was more vague, saying: We did discuss the techniques. There was no effort on our part to keep him from that. Cheney went on to label the Senate Intelligence Committee’s study as full of crap. But Americans and the media were silent on these crimes in the Bush administration, but want to attribute all these falsehoods to the Obama administration.
Posted on: Fri, 12 Dec 2014 05:26:32 +0000
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