Spymasters: CIA in the Crosshairs Page #9

OUR REVIEW WAS A METICULOUS

AND DETAILED EXAMINATION OF

RECORDS.

NONE OF THE PRINCIPALS

INVOLVED IN THIS WERE

INTERVIEWED, WHICH IS RATHER

IMPORTANT BECAUSE THE ALLEGED

MOTIVE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO FIND

OUT HOW THIS CAME TO PASS, WHA HAPPENED AND MAKE SURE IT NEVER

HAPPENS AGAIN.

ENHANCED INTERROGATION

TECHNIQUES WITHOUT ANY DOUBT IN

MY MIND PRODUCED UNIQUE

INTELLIGENCE THAT STOPPED PLOTS,

SAVED LIVES, TOOK ADDITIONAL

SENIOR AL QAEDA OFFICERS OFF THE

BATTLEFIELD.

WE TOOK 20 EXAMPLES THAT THE

C.I.A. ITSELF CLAIMED TO SHOW

THE SUCCESS OF THESE

INTERROGATIONS, AND NOT A SINGLE

CASE HOLDS UP.

THEY ARE VIRTUALLY WRONG IN

ALL 20 OF THE CASES.

ONE OF THE 20 CASES IS A

SENIOR AL QAEDA OPERATIVE

TELLING US THAT AL QAEDA HAD

MOVED TO A PARTICULAR CITY IN

PAKISTAN.

THAT'S WHAT HE TOLD US BEFORE

ENHANCED INTERROGATION

TECHNIQUES.

AFTER ENHANCED INTERROGATION

TECHNIQUES, HE ACTUALLY SITS

DOWN WITH SATELLITE PHOTOGRAPHY

AND POINTS OUT THE ACTUAL

BUILDING WHERE SENIOR AL QAEDA

OPERATIVES ARE, WHICH ALLOWS US

TO GO AND DEAL WITH THEM.

THE VALUE IN MY ESTIMATION AS

I SAT AT MY 5:
00 MEETING EVERY

NIGHT AND AS WE WERE USING THIS

INFORMATION TO BREAK UP PLOTS,

CAPTURE LEADERS, STOP FURTHER

ATTACKS AGAINST THE UNITED

STATES, WAS ENORMOUSLY HIGH.

WITHOUT THIS PROGRAM, HEATHROW

AIRPORT WOULD'VE BEEN BOMBED.

OTHER FACILITIES IN GREA BRITAIN WOULD'VE BEEN BOMBED.

BUILDINGS IN NEW YORK WOULD'VE

EXPLODED.

SUSPENSION BRIDGES WOULD'VE BEEN

TAKEN DOWN.

Narrator:
AND TENET INSISTS

THAT INTELLIGENCE FROM THE

ENHANCED INTERROGATIONS LEADS TO

THE CAPTURE OF A TERRORIS PLANNING A SPECTACULAR ATTACK.

HE HAD ALREADY RECRUITED 17

SOUTHEAST ASIANS TO ENGAGE IN AN

AIRLINE PLOT AGAINST THE WES COAST OF THE UNITED STATES.

THE VALUE IS...

THE REPORT SAYS YOU HAD THA INFORMATION FROM OTHER SOURCES.

THE REPORT IS DEAD WRONG ON

EVERY ACCOUNT, PERIOD, END OF

PARAGRAPH.

THE BIN LADEN OPERATION WOULD

NOT HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOU THE COURIER IN QUESTION BEING

HIGHLIGHTED AS PROMINENTLY AS HE

WAS BY DETAINEES.

Narrator:
DIRECTOR JOHN

BRENNAN, WHO WAS TROUBLED BY THE

BRUTAL TECHNIQUES, SAYS THE JURY

IS OUT.

WHAT I'M SAYING IS THA THERE'S NO WAY TO KNOW WHETHER

OR NOT KHALID SHEIKH MOHAMMED

WOULD HAVE PROVIDED THA INFORMATION IF HE HAD NOT BEEN

WATERBOARDED.

THAT IS UNKNOWABLE BECAUSE THA SCENARIO NEVER HAPPENED.

DIRECTOR BRENNAN IS A GOOD

FRIEND OF MINE AND I HAVE THE

UTMOST RESPECT FOR HIM, BUT I

WOULD JUST RESPECTFULLY DISAGREE

WITH THAT.

I MEAN, THAT STRIKES ME AS A

DODGE WRAPPED IN POLITICAL

CORRECTNESS.

Narrator:
ANSWERS TO SOME OF

THESE QUESTIONS MIGHT HAVE BEEN

FOUND BY WATCHING VIDEOTAPE.

THE WATERBOARDING OF TWO

PRISONERS WAS ACTUALLY RECORDED,

BUT THE VIDEOTAPES WERE

DESTROYED.

WHILE I WAS STILL THE

DIRECTOR IN A MORNING BRIEFING,

AT THE END OF THE BRIEFING,

SOMEONE SAID, "OH, BY THE WAY,

THE TAPES WERE DESTROYED."

AND I ROSE OUT OF MY CHAIR AND

SAID, "WHAT?"

MY PRIMARY MOTIVATION IN

DESTROYING THE TAPES WAS TO

PROTECT THE PEOPLE WHO WORK FOR

ME.

THEY SHOWED PEOPLE NAKED, BEING

WATERBOARDED AND GOING THROUGH

THE ENHANCED INTERROGATION

TECHNIQUES.

JOSE KNOWS HOW I FEEL ABOU IT.

HE LEFT ME IN A HORRIBLE,

HORRIBLE SPOT.

MY CONCERN WAS, IT WOULD CAUSE A

FIRESTORM ON THE HILL

POLITICALLY BECAUSE EVERYBODY

WOULD ASSUME THERE WAS SOMETHING

TO HIDE RATHER THAN SOMETHING TO

SHOW.

I KNEW THAT THE TAPES WOULD

PLAY AS IF, YOU KNOW, WE WERE

ALL PSYCHOPATHS, AND THAT'S

SOMETHING THAT WE DIDN'T WANT.

SO, YOU HAD THE DIRECTOR OF

NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE, THE

DIRECTOR OF THE C.I.A., A MEMBER

OF CONGRESS ALL SAYING, "WE

DON'T WANT THESE TAPES

DESTROYED," AND YOU DID IT.

NOW I WAS NOT STUPID; I

DIDN'T ONE DAY DECIDE TO GET OU OF BED AND DESTROY TAPES.

I GOT APPROVAL TO DO THIS.

I CONSULTED WITH OUR LAWYERS.

THE VIDEOTAPES WERE DESTROYED

SHORTLY AFTER C.I.A. ATTORNEYS

RAISED CONCERNS THAT CONGRESS

MIGHT FIND OUT ABOUT THE TAPES.

Narrator:
A NECESSARY EVIL OR

A BETRAYAL OF AMERICAN VALUES?

SOMEBODY HAS TO STAND UP AND

BE WILLING TO SAY, "THIS IS NO WHAT OUR COUNTRY IS ABOUT."

YES, WE'RE FACING A TERRIBLE

ENEMY, ONE WHO DOESN'T CARE

ABOUT WHO GETS KILLED, BUT THE

UNITED STATES IS BETTER THAN

THAT.

OUR CONSTITUTION DOES

PROHIBIT "CRUEL AND UNUSUAL"

TREATMENT.

IF IT'S CRUEL, WE SHOULDN'T BE

DOING IT.

WE'VE GOT TO HAVE PEOPLE WHO ARE

PREPARED TO SAY, "MR. PRESIDEN YOU CAN'T DO THAT.

IT'S ILLEGAL."

LET'S HAVE A C.I.A. DIRECTOR

BEING INTERVIEWED HERE AFTER THE

SECOND WAVE AND... AND YOU GE TO ASK HIM THE QUESTION, "NOW,

LOOK, THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

SAID IT WAS LEGAL BUT YET YOU

REFUSE TO DO IT.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT YOUR

DECISION NOW?"

AND SO LET'S NOT PRETEND THA THIS IS THE FORCES OF LIGHT AND

FORCES OF DARKNESS.

THESE ARE TWO DAMN UGLY

DECISIONS.

AS THE COMMANDER OF THE

MULTINATIONAL FORCE IN IRAQ, WE

ACTUALLY HAD 27,000 DETAINEES A THE HIGH WATERMARK OF OUR

OPERATIONS.

MY VIEW, QUITE SIMPLY, IS THA IF YOU WANT INFORMATION FROM A

DETAINEE, YOU BECOME HIS BES FRIEND.

YOU HAVE TO HAVE VERY SKILLED

INTERROGATORS, VERY SKILLED

ANALYSTS AND SO FORTH.

IT'S A LONG PROCESS.

THESE ARE THE HARDENED, WORS TERRORISTS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE

DEATHS OF THOUSANDS OF AMERICANS

IN A PERIOD WHERE WE SIMPLY

DIDN'T BELIEVE WE HAD TIME TO

BECOME THEIR BEST FRIENDS.

I JUST DON'T THINK A COUNTRY

LIKE OURS SHOULD BE CULPABLE OF

CONDUCTING TORTURE.

I JUST THINK IT'S BENEATH OUR

DIGNITY.

I THINK IT'S POOR FOR OUR

REPUTATION IN THE WORLD.

SHOULD A COUNTRY, THE UNITED

STATES OF AMERICA-- WHICH STANDS

FOR HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE WORLD,

WHICH STANDS FOR HUMAN DIGNITY

PROBABLY MORE THAN ANY COUNTRY--

DO THOSE TECHNIQUES TO ANOTHER

HUMAN BEING?

RIGHT?

THAT'S... THAT'S A REALLY

REASONABLE QUESTION.

ONE IS, IT'S WRONG.

BUT IF YOU DON'T ACCEPT THAT,

DON'T DO IT BECAUSE IT TYPICALLY

WILL BITE YOU IN THE BACKSIDE

LATER ON.

YOU WILL PAY A PRICE FOR WHA YOU DO, AND IT WILL BE VASTLY

GREATER THAN WHATEVER IT IS YOU

GOT OUT OF TAKING THIS

PARTICULAR ACTION.

YOU CAN JUDGE US.

WE MADE THOSE DECISIONS FOR GOOD

AND VALID REASONS, AND ALL I

WOULD BE ABLE TO SAY IS WE SA WHERE WE SAT.

WE DECIDED WHAT WE DID.

WE UNDERSTOOD THE IMPLICATIONS.

I CAN STAND HERE TODAY AS

PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

AND SAY WITHOUT EXCEPTION OR

EQUIVOCATION THAT WE DO NO TORTURE.

GIVEN PRESIDENT OBAMA'S

CRITICISM OF ENHANCED

INTERROGATION TECHNIQUES, I

THINK ONE OF THE INTERESTING

QUESTIONS IS:
WHAT WOULD HE HAVE

DONE HAD HE BEEN PUT IN

PRESIDENT BUSH'S SHOES WHEN

GEORGE TENET CAME TO HIM AND

SAID, "YOU NEED TO DO THIS OR

AMERICANS ARE GOING TO DIE"?

AND OBVIOUSLY I DON'T KNOW WHA THE PRESIDENT WOULD'VE DONE, AND

POSSIBLY HE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT HE

WOULD'VE DONE.

HOW DO WE MAKE SURE WE ARE

NOT SO CAUGHT UP IN THE FEAR OF

AN ENEMY THAT WE BEGIN TO MOVE

AWAY FROM THE PRINCIPLES AND THE

STANDARDS THAT REPRESENT WHA THIS COUNTRY'S ALL ABOUT?

AND, YOU KNOW, THAT'S NOT AN

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