Source: Joby Warrick and Karen DeYoung, The Washington Post, December 12, 2008.
Excerpt:
In the most comprehensive critique by Congress of the military's interrogation practices, the Senate Armed Services Committee issued a report yesterday that accuses Rumsfeld and his deputies of being the authors and chief promoters of harsh interrogation policies that disgraced the nation and undermined U.S. security. The report, released by Sens. Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.), contends that Pentagon officials later tried to create a false impression that the policies were unrelated to acts of detainee abuse committed by members of the military......Click here to see the website for the Committee Report.
The administration's policies and the resulting controversies, the panel concluded, "damaged our ability to collect accurate intelligence that could save lives, strengthened the hand of our enemies, and compromised our moral authority."
Comment: This blog focuses on knowledge, and in that respect the conclusion that the administrations policies "damaged our ability to collect accurate intelligence" is most worthy of note. It seems clear that those policies have been responsible for many people joining insurgencies and terrorists to fight against the United States. Even if that were not true, they are morally wrong. Thanks to the Senate Committee for the investigation, and thanks especially to John McCain, the ranking Republican, for not covering up the mistakes of the Republican administration. JAD
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