John McCain regained an ounce of redemption in my book today (at least a moratorium on calling him McNothing) when he declared on the Senate floor that torture is not what led to the finding of Osama bin Laden.
Differing with some of his colleagues on this issue (those who want to justify the Bush administration's endorsement of "enhanced interrogation," including GW Bush himself), McCain wrote the following op-ed piece for the Washington Post May 13):
I asked CIA Director Leon Panetta for the facts, and he told me the following: The trail to bin Laden did not begin with a disclosure from Khalid Sheik Mohammed, who was waterboarded 183 times. The first mention of Abu Ahmed al-Kuwaiti — the nickname of the al-Qaeda courier who ultimately led us to bin Laden — as well as a description of him as an important member of al-Qaeda, came from a detainee held in another country, who we believe was not tortured. None of the three detainees who were waterboarded provided Abu Ahmed’s real name, his whereabouts or an accurate description of his role in al-Qaeda.In fact, the use of “enhanced interrogation techniques” on Khalid Sheik Mohammed produced false and misleading information. He specifically told his interrogators that Abu Ahmed had moved to Peshawar, got married and ceased his role as an al-Qaeda facilitator — none of which was true. According to the staff of the Senate intelligence committee, the best intelligence gained from a CIA detainee — information describing Abu Ahmed al-Kuwaiti’s real role in al-Qaeda and his true relationship to bin Laden — was obtained through standard, noncoercive means.
So there, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and lots of GOP senators and congressmen. But then, why believe Leon Panetta? He's an Obama appointee, is he not?
Ralp
Rick Santorum says McCain is wrong about torture -- it actually works because those NeoCons who believe it works have told him it works.
ReplyDeleteRick is spouting the talking points of that crowd.
If you want to believe something, facts don't change your mind.