Destruction of Waterboarding Tapes approved by CIA Lawyers
[Guest post by DRJ]
The New York Times reports that CIA lawyers approved the destruction of the videotapes of al Qaeda interrogations:
“Lawyers within the clandestine branch of the Central Intelligence Agency gave written approval in advance to the destruction in 2005 of hundreds of hours of videotapes documenting interrogations of two lieutenants from Al Qaeda, according to a former senior intelligence official with direct knowledge of the episode.
The involvement of agency lawyers in the decision making would widen the scope of the inquiries into the matter that have now begun in Congress and within the Justice Department. Any written documents are certain to be a focus of government investigators as they try to reconstruct the events leading up to the tapes’ destruction.”
Apparently the CIA employs a “Hell, No” standard when dealing with the White House:
“The former intelligence official acknowledged that there had been nearly two years of debate among government agencies about what to do with the tapes, and that lawyers within the White House and the Justice Department had in 2003 advised against a plan to destroy them. But the official said that C.I.A. officials had continued to press the White House for a firm decision, and that the C.I.A. was never given a direct order not to destroy the tapes.
“They never told us, ‘Hell, no,’” he said. “If somebody had said, ‘You cannot destroy them,’ we would not have destroyed them.”
As in earlier reports, the destruction of the tapes was attributed to former CIA clandestine director Jose A. Rodriguez, and I think he had a good reason for wanting to destroy them:
“The former official said Mr. Rodriguez decided in November 2005 that he had sufficient authority to destroy the interrogation videos, based on the written authorization given to him from lawyers within the branch, then known as the Directorate of Operations.
***
The former intelligence official who described the decision to destroy the tapes said Mr. Rodriguez’s primary concern was the safety of C.I.A. agents whose faces could be identified in the tapes. The tapes were destroyed amid growing Congressional and legal scrutiny into the C.I.A’s detention and interrogation program.”
I wonder if this means the investigations will continue but without the intense anti-Bush rhetoric?
Probably not. Driver’s Wile E. Coyote post seems appropriate right now.
– DRJ
Another President, with a ruthless streak in him, would avail himself of this opportunity to expose every person within the Intell Community that has been advancing his/her personal agenda over the policies of the United States Government, and publicly sack them.
Unfortunately, though GWB is stubborn on some matters, I don’t think of him as being either ruthless, or with that much backbone to antagonize the movers and shakers in the Boston/NY/DC corrider.
We here in the hinterlands will continue to be allowed to vote for a figure-head, while the real government resides in the corriders of Foggy Bottom and Langley sans accountability.
Who was it who said that the people get the government the deserve?
Comment by Another Drew — 12/11/2007 @ 5:54 pm
The former intelligence official who described the decision to destroy the tapes said Mr. Rodriguez’s primary concern was the safety of C.I.A. agents whose faces could be identified in the tapes.
Because no one’s ever come up with a technological method of removing names and faces from a video.
Comment by glasnost — 12/11/2007 @ 5:54 pm
I saw a news report that said President Bush destroyed the tapes over the objections of Congress. I almost threw my shoe through my new plasma. The media is going to let the Dems define the narrative for this issue, yet again.
Comment by JD — 12/11/2007 @ 6:08 pm
Glasnost. You caught us. But, if you ask Pelosi and Reid, they will tell you that pixelated pix will not play as well in their campaign commercials.
Comment by JD — 12/11/2007 @ 6:17 pm
“We here in the hinterlands will continue to be allowed to vote for a figure-head, while the real government resides in the corriders of Foggy Bottom and Langley sans accountability.”
Wasnt the church commission supposed to put an end to this?
Comment by whitd — 12/11/2007 @ 7:47 pm
If the CIA admits waterboarding, why would the tapes be admissible at trial? I would think they would be prejudicial, since it was already stipulated it happened.
Well, except for Bush-bashing, outside of trial.
Comment by Patricia — 12/11/2007 @ 8:02 pm
Сертификация программного обеспечения Сертификация программных продуктов на соответствие требованиям действующим нормативным документам serifikat@mail.ru
а также метрологическая аттестация программных продуктов
все вопросы на е-мейл serifikat@mail.ru
Сертификация и Метрологическая аттестация программного обеспечения serifikat@mail.ru
Сертификация ПО ОФИЦИАЛЬНО!
Порядок проведения сертификации программного обеспечения в СДС ПО СИИИС включает:
- подачу заявки на сертификацию;
- принятие решения по заявке на сертификацию, в том числе назначение экспертов на проведение основных работ по сертификации из числа экспертов органа по сертификации;
- оформление договора на проведение работ по сертификации;
- проведение сертификационной проверки ПО СИИИС, в том числе при необходимости проведение испытаний ПО (ПП) по согласованным с заказчиком методикам;
- принятие решения о выдаче Сертификата соответствия и разрешения использования знака соответствия либо об отказе в выдаче Сертификата соответствия;
- выдача Сертификата соответствия и разрешения использования знака соответствия;
- занесение юридического лица или индивидуального предпринимателя и перечня сертифицированного ПО (ПП) в Реестр СДС ПО СИИИС;
- проведение инспекционного контроля сертифицированного ПО (ПП).
Comment by serifikat — 12/11/2007 @ 9:54 pm
What is the source of all of this outrage? Since the CIA doesn’t deny that the waterboarding took place and since the tapes were not subpoenaed, why the hell not destroy them if there is a good reason to do so?
The only function these tapes could have served is the function that that Abu Grahaib photos served, as a rally point for Islamist rable rousers and a focal point for America haters to engage in pretend moralizing. Oh. I guess I just answered my own question. That’s why the outrage.
Comment by Doc Rampage — 12/12/2007 @ 12:42 am
Tempest, Teapot, 35 seconds of waterboarding followed by being treated to 35 weeks of bloviating mockraged Democrats….
Should have just surrendered when we had the chance……..
Comment by EricPWJohnson — 12/12/2007 @ 1:19 am
Water is under the bridge and out to sea.
So say “my bad”.
We can arrange a personal demonstration into the procedure if you so desire. If not then run away and STFU!
Comment by TC — 12/12/2007 @ 3:00 am
Well said, serifikat.
*wink*
Comment by Patricia — 12/12/2007 @ 9:04 am
The Church Commission…
After poking out the eyes of the CIA, etc, they put a blindfold on the Intell Comm and made the agency safe for PC wussies.
Comment by Another Drew — 12/12/2007 @ 6:19 pm
“After poking out the eyes of the CIA, etc, they put a blindfold on the Intell Comm and made the agency safe for PC wussies.”
So that’s when the CIA went bad?
Comment by whit — 12/13/2007 @ 5:07 am
Just a heads up… This went around the office yesterday:
Statement on Destruction of Tapes
Comment by Darkmage — 12/13/2007 @ 11:33 am
Okay, not yesterday. I need to look at dates more often…
Comment by Darkmage — 12/13/2007 @ 11:34 am
I bet right now the terrorists are looking at us & thinking what big pussies we are. They would be right.
Comment by Rainier Luftwaffe Wolfcastle — 12/13/2007 @ 9:40 pm
Hello,
I’m Gerald.
Just saying hey – I’m new.
Comment by oOgerryOo — 12/15/2007 @ 8:44 am
Hello
Just stopping in to say hi to y’all as a new member.
Aaron
Comment by aABeckerkoo — 12/22/2007 @ 8:16 am