The Republican Reaction To The Obama Administration’s Politically Motivated Investigation Of The CIA

by John Hawkins | August 26, 2009 1:11 pm

CIA Squirrel

In an effort to placate the Left, Barack Obama’s administration is going to legally target the CIA for its interrogations of terrorists. This encourages America’s enemies and puts our country at greater risk because it sends a message to the CIA: Keep your head down or you might be targeted with a politically motivated prosecution for doing your job.

Unsurprisingly, the reaction on the Right to these prosecutions has been nuclear and as a change of pace, I decided to quote from Republican politicians instead of the bloggers. Here’s a taste of what they’ve been saying:

“Where do we draw the line? Shouldn’t we also ask Attorney General Holder about seventy instances before 9/11 in which the United States sent terrorist detainees to other countries for interrogation? Most of these renditions took place during the Clinton years when Mr. Holder himself was deputy attorney general. What did Mr. Holder know and when did he know it and what did he or others approve? What precautions did he take to make sure those renditions followed the law?

And, if we are going to second-guess CIA interrogators, should we not also look into those who created the techniques and who asked for legal opinions and who approved them? Should we not ask which members of Congress approved, encouraged, or didn’t object to such techniques?

It is hard to open this can of worms without letting all the worms out.” — Lamar Alexander[1]

“The men and women who protect this country should never have to worry that they will face criminal prosecution as a result of a political election. The Obama Administration’s decision smacks more of a witch hunt designed to satisfy political allies than a strategy to keep the American people safe. — John Boehner[2]

The activities of the CIA in carrying out the policies of the Bush Administration were directly responsible for defeating all efforts by al Qaeda to launch further mass casualty attacks against the United States. The people involved deserve our gratitude. They do not deserve to be the targets of political investigations or prosecutions. President Obama’s decision to allow the Justice Department to investigate and possibly prosecute CIA personnel, and his decision to remove authority for interrogation from the CIA to the White House, serves as a reminder, if any were needed, of why so many Americans have doubts about this Administration’s ability to be responsible for our nation’s security. — Dick Cheney[3]

“It’s bulls***. It’s disgraceful. You wonder which side they’re on…It’s a total breach of faith, and either the president is intentionally caving to the left wing of his party or he’s lost control of his administration.” — Peter King[4]

Several years ago, career professionals at the Department decided the facts did not support prosecuting America’s intelligence professionals based on the practices at issue today. Now, the administration risks chilling our defense and intelligence community’s ability to protect us from future terrorist attacks by reopening this matter. If these reports are true, the American people will be rightly outraged by the administration’s actions in this critical area.” — Mitch McConnell

Hat tip to Protein Wisdom[5] for the image.

Endnotes:
  1. Lamar Alexander: http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0809/King_on_Holder_You_wonder_which_side_theyre_on.html
  2. John Boehner: http://johnboehner.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=142456
  3. Dick Cheney: http://www.weeklystandard.com/weblogs/TWSFP/2009/08/cheney_statement_on_cia_docume.asp
  4. Peter King: http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0809/King_on_Holder_You_wonder_which_side_theyre_on.html
  5. Protein Wisdom: http://proteinwisdom.com/?p=15247

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