"Accountability Is Prosecution, Mr. President"

 President Obama, making his first trip to C.I.A. headquarters, acknowledged Monday that agency officials had expressed ‘’understandable anxiety and concern” about his decision to release confidential memos detailing brutal interrogation techniques used by agency operatives, and urged employees not to be discouraged about the ensuing uproar.

“Don’t be discouraged by what’s happened in the last few weeks,” the president said. “Don’t be discouraged that we have to acknowledge potentially we’ve made some mistakes. That’s how we learn.”

Mr. Obama banned the harsh techniques on his second day in office, and he acknowledged that his decision may have made the job of C.I.A. operatives more difficult. But he argued that difficulty is the price of upholding American democratic ideals.

“What makes the United States special and what makes you special is precisely the fact that we are willing to uphold our values and our ideals even when it’s hard, not just when it’s easy, even when we are afraid and under threat, not just when its expedient to do so,” Mr. Obama said, adding, “So yes, you’ve got a harder job and so do I, and that’s okay.” (Read full article)

The interrogation program included "waterboarding," a form of simulated drowning widely considered torture. It came to symbolize U.S. excesses in fighting terrorism after the Sept. 11 attacks.

One memo said waterboarding had been used a total of 266 times on two of the three al Qaeda suspects the CIA acknowledges were waterboarded.

Obama said the memos were released because had become the subject of a burdensome court fight and their covert nature had already been compromised.

Panetta vowed to respect a ban on harsh interrogations that Obama issued in January. He had opposed releasing the memos, joining former CIA directors concerned that their release could expose agents to retribution. (Read Full Article)

The memos show that Justice Department lawyers authorized the CIA to use such techniques as sleep deprivation, slapping, nudity and waterboarding, which simulates drowning. The memos, written from 2002 to 2005, were released in response to a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union.

Obama has ruled out using such methods in the future.

“I’m sure that sometimes it seems as if that means we’re operating with one hand tied behind our back,” Obama said. “What makes the United States special, and what makes you special, is precisely the fact that we are willing to uphold our values and our ideals even when it’s hard, not just when it’s easy.”

No Prosecutions

The president and Attorney General Eric Holder have said there will be no prosecutions of government interrogators who acted under the guidance, issued during the administration of former President George W. Bush.

Obama said he allowed the release of the memos because of “exceptional circumstances,” including that much of the information was already in the public domain. (Read Full Article)

The following can be attributed to Anthony D. Romero, Executive Director of the ACLU:

"President Obama is right to emphasize that there is no contradiction between security and democratic values. The CIA can fulfill its mandate while following the law. Sadly, that wasn't the case in the past. 

"But in order to uphold our values, we need to enforce the law. Torture is a crime. Contrary to previous comments by President Obama and those today by CIA Director Panetta, accountability is neither retribution nor laying blame. It is an integral part of any functioning democracy and of restoring America's values and its reputation. Without accountability, we cannot truly 'move forward' because the stain of the past will haunt us into the future. No one is above the law. Prosecutions accomplish societal healing by ensuring that criminals pay their debt to society. This is as true for common criminals as it is for government officials who sanction and engage in torture.

"It is time to begin criminal investigations of officials who authorized torture, lawyers who justified it and interrogators who broke the law. (Read Full Article)

     After taking the commendable stance against using torture and indefinite detainment of terrorist suspects in the future, the Obama Administration continues to refrain from prosecuting those in the Bush Administration that ordered and carried out the brutal torture of suspected terrorists. President Obama, in vowing to protect the CIA agents that did the torturing, is also protecting the former President, Vice President, cabinet and Congress members that authorized the same brutal torture of suspected terrorists. President Obama promised to have government transparency and accountability but apparently accountability doesn't apply to torturing suspected terrorists. Let us hope the ACLU lawsuit will force the Obama Administration's hand to do the right thing and prosecute the Bush Administration for torture. When it comes to torture, accountability is prosecution, Mr. President.   

tags: water boarding  bush  torture  aclu  cia  barack obama  politics  takebackamerica  

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