|
Going back
on a previous decision not to open an
official investigation into Democrat
allegations that the CIA “tortured”
captured terrorists in order to obtain
information about al Qaeda planned
attacks on the United States, President
Obama has given the okay to Attorney General
Eric Holder to proceed with a witch hunt
and has appointed a special prosecutor
to dig up whatever he can to discredit
the spy agency and if possible, link the
alleged wrong-doing authorization to
either Dick Cheney or President Bush.
In addition Obama has decided to take
the job of interrogating captured
terrorists away from the CIA and move
the responsibility to the FBI, to be run
out of the White House. I wouldn’t be
surprised to hear that he is appointing
an Interrogation Czar, since he seems to
have one for everything else.
In his column this week, political
analyst Dick Morris wrote, “So he has
decided to throw a few CIA interrogators
to the wolves. The report that Holder
released to accompany his decision to
name a special prosecutor itself showed
the trivial nature of the charges
against these patriotic anti-terror
investigators. Among the allegations
prominently featured in the report is
that the mastermind of the attack on the
USS Cole was scrubbed with a rough brush
in the bath so as to cause him pain. Our
heartless interrogators also threatened
that they could bring in his family and
parents for questioning. How do these
"tortures" compare with the deaths of
more than a dozen American sailors
roasted to death in flames or drowned in
the sea?”
The decision to reverse his previous
decision not to go after the CIA is no
doubt an effort to placate his political
base—the radical left, who are wondering
what happened to its candidate that
vociferously opposed the war in Iraq and
promised immediate withdrawal, but now,
once in the driver’s seat, is continuing
with the Bush timetable. This is likely
to turn into a media circus, which will
take attention away from the seemingly
endless supply of messes the
administration is making with the
economy, health reform and attempts to
convince the citizenry that the
government knows better than you how to
manage your life.
Debra J. Saunders, writing in Town Hall
Daily reminds us of Attorney General
Holder’s experience with pardons: “When
he served as deputy attorney general,
now Attorney General Eric Holder gave a
"neutral leaning positive"
recommendation that led to President
Bill Clinton's pardoning of
gazillionaire fugitive Marc Rich, who
was on the lam in Switzerland hiding
from federal charges of fraud, evading
more than $48 million in taxes,
racketeering and trading oil with Iran
in violation of a U.S. embargo.
Holder also had a role in the 1999
Clinton pardons of 16 Puerto Rico
independence terrorists -- members of
the bomb-happy FALN or the splinter
group Los Macheteros -- who had been
convicted on such charges as bank
robbery, possession of explosives and
participating in a seditious conspiracy
-- even though none of the 16 had
applied for clemency. As the Los Angeles
Times reported, two of the 16 refused to
accept the pardon -- as it required them
to renounce violence -- while another
later was killed in a shootout with
federal agents.”
While she suggests pardons for the CIA
men, it would be better for all if the
president issued amnesty for the CIA
interrogators. A pardon would probably
be unacceptable since it implies guilt.
This whole business has the potential of
becoming yet another colossal failure on
the part of the new administration. I
can’t think of any other president who
has tried to micromanage so many facets
of the government by appointing czars
who report and are accountable only to
him.
The notion that Muslim terrorist
interrogations are to be run from the
White House is laughable. I suppose the
president will decide what tactics are
suitable to gain secrets from the
toughest, most dangerous high value
terrorists. I assume he will specify the
size feather to be used to tickle the
information out of the prisoners. Tough
questions will no doubt be prefaced with
“please” and “pretty please with sugar
and candy on it.”
|
