http://yidwithlid.blogspot.com/2009/05/video-of-pelosis-press-conference.html
Anyone watching House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's news conference this week had to feel some what sorry for her. Her repeated denials and then admission of knowledge of water boarding is a classic example of political flip flopping.
She basically had two choices. She could have done the right thing and admitted that in 2002 as the then ranking house member on the intelligence committee she had to be completely aware of what the CIA was doing in its attempts to glean any information possible to prevent any further attacks on the country.
Or she could deny knowledge of the enhanced interrogation techniques to curry favor with the teary eyed moralist hypocrites in her party who now want to prosecute anyone associated with establishing methods to extract information from an unrepentant mass murderer. Of course, she chose door number 2.
Jump in the way back machine and consider what had happened. Not only did we have the tower attacks but we had also had a long string of attacks against us off shore. Couple that with the anthrax attacks which started on 9/18/01 and we were a nation under mental siege wondering what catastrophe might be next.
Any public official, particularly the ranking member of the house intelligence committee would certainly want to be on top of any and all measures that were being taken to protect the country. If they weren't then a thinking person would have to question whether or not that person was fit to be in government.
Speaker Pelosi did not admit to being fully engaged in the CIA's intelligence gathering effort. Instead, she says that she was far removed from the process and only briefed once on the subject. She further says that she was lied to and congress was mislead by the CIA. (One can only wonder how the CIA will retaliate.)
For many of us the issue of water boarding is a tempest in a teapot. The continued referring to it as "torture" is somewhat misleading when you consider that some of our own troops are subjected to it during training.
But now that a big deal has been made out of it and certain portions of the political spectrum want to have a full airing of the issue then it is only fair that all of the officials involved should come under scrutiny including the people who condoned it but now deny knowledge of it and now want investigations and show trials .
In addition, now that the President has released portions of the interrogation documents he ought to heed former Vice President Cheney's call for release of what information was gained.
Victoria Toensing writes in today's Wall Street Journal a very informative piece regarding the lengths which the Bush justice department went to establish a legal framework to authorize enhanced interrogation while at the same time restricting measures that would inflict harm on the prisoner.
Ms. Toensing concludes the piece with the following, "There should be a rule that all persons proposing investigation, prosecution or disbarment must read the two memos and all underlying documents and then draft a dissenting analysis."
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124243020964825531.html
