If GOP Takes Senate Next Week, Expect The CIA Torture Report To Disappear
from the bye-bye dept
We’ve heard some mumbling about one of the main reasons that the CIA has been dragging its feet on declassifying the executive summary of the CIA torture report that the Senate Intelligence Committee put together: it knows there’s a decent chance that the Republicans will win the Senate next week, and suddenly the report may disappear from view. As you may recall, the Intelligence Committee (with support from GOP Senators) voted to declassify the 480 page executive summary of the 6,300 page report (which the Senate spent $40 million putting together). Multiple leaks concerning the report have suggested that it’s devastating and details how terrible the CIA’s torture program was, how it was completely ineffective and how the CIA lied about it all.
But most of the support for releasing the report is coming from the Democrats on the Senate Intelligence Committee, led by Dianne Feinstein (who sides with the NSA on plenty of stuff, but is more willing to challenge the CIA). But if the Republicans take the Senate next week, then the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee will likely shift to Senator Richard Burr, who has made it quite clear that he’s on the CIA’s team and against the public interest.
“I personally don’t believe that anything that goes on in the intelligence committee should ever be discussed publicly,” Burr told reporters in March. “If I had my way, with the exception of nominees, there would never be a public intelligence hearing.”
It’s also expected that Burr will try to muzzle Ron Wyden and Mark Udall (if Udall is re-elected, which is iffy at this point):
If Burr takes over as chair, he could easily sideline the committee’s vocal civil libertarian bloc led by Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), and bolstered by Mark Udall (D-Colo.) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), two senators who’ve called for Brennan’s resignation.
Udall, in particular, drew blunt criticisms from Burr earlier this year for disclosing the existence of an internal CIA review of the detention and interrogation program that Democrats believe vindicates their own study.
“I think Mark did make some public releases that were committee-sensitive information, but that’s for the committee internally to handle,” Burr told reporters in March. “My concern is that the release of information could potentially cause the losses of life to Americans. That to me, is a threshold that should be addressed.”
As for the torture report itself, Burr has already said that the report is inaccurate and he’s against it being released in any form. When a group of religious leaders asked him to support releasing the report, Burr told them he didn’t think the report was accurate:
Last year, Burr drew criticism from more than 190 North Carolina religious leaders, including Christians, Jews, Quakers, and Muslims, for opposing the release of the Senate’s post-9/11 torture report.
“The U.S. does not condone torture, but torture has been done by our citizens and in our country’s name,” reads a letter the religious leaders sent Burr. “We are writing to you as fellow people of faith to support the release of the … report.”
Disappointing the religious groups, Burr responded in a letter saying he opposed making the report public due to factual inaccuracies contained within the report. “I believe the American public should be provided with reports that are based on accurate facts,” he said.
Given all of this, if the GOP does win, it seems like the only way the public may ever see the details is if someone steps up and leaks the damn thing.
Filed Under: cia, congress, dianne feinstein, gop, republicans, richard burr, senate, senate intelligence committee, torture report
Comments on “If GOP Takes Senate Next Week, Expect The CIA Torture Report To Disappear”
And this, as difficult as it is for my parents to understand, is why I’m not a Republican (amongst many other reasons).
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So because they at least give you a doctored report is somehow better than none at all?
Both are corrupt, I would almost want repukes up there more because they get cut less slack from everyone else, but the same shit is going down regardless of party.
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I know perfectly well that both are corrupt. But just look at this one case in isolation. At the very basic level, this is pro-torture vs anti-torture. Anyone that is pro-torture doesn’t deserve to lead, IMHO.
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I agree, as a Free Nation that espouses Liberty and Justice there is no room for torture of any kind.
But people are mistaken to believe that anyone in leadership is anti-torture… the dems are feeding people everyone a line.
They could have ended torture but instead shoved obamacare down people throats…
Neither Party as this time is acting on behalf of either our Liberties or National Interests, they are both building a damn empire and just simply disagree on how to do it, which the rest of the sheeple fall for this bullshit R vs D farce.
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You seem to be saying that doing something just because the people want to see them doing it is a bad thing. It’s what they’re supposed to be doing! Representative government, remember?
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Not what I am saying.
What I am saying is that they are doing it as pure political theater, and you are enjoying the show.
Why should we even be worrying about a “torture report”? It should be flat out NOT ALLOWED!
This why there are so many sheeple… you get distracted by the smoke and mirrors before you realize… hey? Why are there smoke and mirrors in the first place? O right… to deceive and mislead us of course!
If there needs to be a report it needs to say… 0 tortures happened or this agent tortured someone and now that agent is being criminally prosecuted and it describing the details around the case!
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Yeah. That includes the current President and Senator Burr, apparently. And some people are anti-torture, like Senators Wyden and McCain, and they deserve support for that position.
Don’t be Republican or Democrat when you vote. Be anti-torture. This may involve voting for people from different parties.
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McCain may be “anti-torture” but he sure isn’t anti-war. He has no problem sending troops overseas to fight and die.
Those of you think it is better to be “anti-torture” vs anti-war, raise your arms. See, even McCain agrees.
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“So because they at least give you a doctored report is somehow better than none at all?”
Yup! It should be publically released with statements from all parties (Repub, Demo, CIA, White House) about what their opinions are. Why does a mostly factual report have to stay secret over a couple of (likely) minor details?
This is a report about a major issue in our history and needs to be released to the public.
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So… I am confused…
Which part of the lie is making you happy?
the first part of the misleading lie
-or-
the last part of the damned lie?
“I can put shit in a box and slap a warranty on it if that is what you want!
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I’m pretty pissed that a 40 million dollar report is inaccurate at all, for that kind of money it should be free of any mistakes.
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You misunderstand him, when he said it’s got mistakes and inaccuracies, he’s referring to it being created at all. After all, if you believe, like he does, that nothing the spy agencies do should be made public, then clearly it’s a massive ‘mistake’ for their actions to be reviewed.
Likewise, if you don’t believe that the people have a right to know what the government is doing, than any data made public is going to be ‘inaccurate’, and should be dismissed because of it, though he can’t tell you just what is incorrect, it being classified you know.
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If both parties are the same and it really makes no difference who is in office …..
Then why are some people spending record amounts ($4 Billion) trying to get their own personal rubber stamp mouthpiece in office?
Seems to be evidence to the contrary. The old rational about simply trying to convince the plebes they really do have a voice does not ring true in light of these numbers.
On a side note, think what good that money could be doing rather than flooding the airwaves with bullshit. It is a disgrace.
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It’s not true that both parties are identical. There are many differences between the two. But, on most of the biggest issues we stuggle with with, it’s true that there isn’t much difference at all.
“Then why are some people spending record amounts ($4 Billion) trying to get their own personal rubber stamp mouthpiece in office?”
Because they want their own rubber stamp.
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“Then why are some people spending record amounts ($4 Billion) trying to get their own personal rubber stamp mouthpiece in office?”
To drown out everyone else.
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@ a non cow 10:45-
dem’rats, rethugs, two faces of the same korporate money party…
if you think saint obama and the dem’rats REALLY WANT to have that report come out, you are smoking much better shit than i am to be so purblind…
he/they have been running cover for ALL previous war krimes etc, since day one: ‘look forward…’ blah blah blah…
sorry, The System ™ is borked, and until it is rebooted to destroy the korporate money party stranglehold on both status quo parties, NOTHING WILL CHANGE…
oh, wait, it will change: to the most 1984 state we can be ! ! !
change you can bewieve in, dem’rat koolaid drinkers ! ! !
the party of limited government and strict adherence to the constitution*
exceptions apply to mass surveilance, corporate welfare, starting wars and toppling governments in favor of said corporations, and whenever the issue is a personal choice that they don’t agree with(gay marriage, abortion/contraception, drug use) then you better watch out because big government is coming and the GOP will make sure it won’t be accountable
Re: the party of limited government and strict adherence to the constitution*
Yes, they are the party of limited government – small enough to fit in your vagina.
Disappearing report...
Don’t worry, the report will be with Lois Lerner’s emails.
Re: Disappearing report...
And I would also note that if the report disappeared, Obama would applaud the action.
Finally we would have bipartasianship!
Re: Re: Disappearing spellcheck [was Disappearing report...]
That is just such a cromulent word. I mean, break it apart and take a good hard look at it. In small pieces, one at a time.
Bi – part – asian – ship
But then, put it all back together again, and what does it mean, exactly?
Re: Re: Re: Disappearing spellcheck [was Disappearing report...]
Bipartisanship.
A word that does not fucking mean the way they use it.
Bi = 2
Partisan = “someone strongly supporting their party or cause”
Ship = is just a denoting of condition “this in they way of being”
So a Bipartisan agreement literally means 2 people pissing and moaning over a problem until one or the other has made enough concessions for both to agree, grudgingly or not.
Re: Re: Re:2 Disappearing spellcheck [was Disappearing report...]
But partisan is not at all the same as part asian.
“He was part asian and all slav. He was bearded, yes indeed bearded, as all the other partisans were bearded. But his black beard was the beard of the great khans: Genghis and Kublai. Naturally, he was ferocious. He was their leader, the partisan commander.”
Re: Re: Re:3 Disappearing spellcheck [was Disappearing report...]
doh, I missed your intentional misspelling.
ha ha
Re: Re: Re: Disappearing spellcheck [was Disappearing report...]
Wow. I though that I was the king of pedantry around here, but I bow to your superior skills!
Re: Re: Re:2 Disappearing spellcheck [was Disappearing report...]
Replied to the wrong comment. This was meant for the AC at 11:59am
Re: Re: Re: Disappearing spellcheck [was Disappearing report...]
It means a partially bi-sexual asian romantic. Pretty sure.
Re: Re: Re: Disappearing spellcheck [was Disappearing report...]
Bip – Art -Asians-hip?
Perhaps he should concentrate on making sure that US agencies do not act in a way that causes people to want to kill Americans.
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Or make Americans want to kill themselves.
I am pretty sure that by now more Americans kill themselves with shame over what their country has become being the final straw than what terrorists manage.
Being proud to be a member of a freedom-loving country may be what it takes for some to stay in the game and teach others to take pride.
And a whole lot more are taken down by depression than by terrorists. So if you want to save American lives, stop cowing to terrorists.
“Given all of this, if the GOP does win, it seems like the only way the public may ever see the details is if someone steps up and leaks the damn thing.“
Which seems like the modus operandi for anything reaching the public in regards to governmental misconduct…
Lack of perspective
“”My concern is that the release of information could potentially cause the losses of life to Americans.”
Other things that potentially cause the losses [sic] of life to Americans:
Interstate highways
Cigarettes
Guns
Furniture [1]
Obesity
Swimming pools
Inadequate medical care
Motorcycles
Football
Flu
Police officers
and so on.
If the criteria for decision-making are that all outcomes which might possibly result in an American death are disallowed, then no possible decisions can be made. Ever.
[1] Americans Are as Likely to Be Killed by Their Own Furniture as by Terrorism – Micah Zenko – The Atlantic
At this point the only realistic way I see us getting the report with a GOP takeover is if Mark Udall were to lose re-election and then he leaks the report (and all other sorts of goodies) as a parting shot. A man can dream, can’t he?
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This^
While I hope Udall gets re-elected, he should definitely make the report public if he doesn’t.
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So redacted then?
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That’s the first thing I thought when I read the TD article about potentially losing him. The second thing I thought was “hell, he should’ve done it a month ago.”
40M for an crappy report?!?!
“he opposed making the report public due to factual inaccuracies contained within the report.”
Apparently 40M does not guarantee accuracy these days.
“…potentially cause the losses of life to Americans.”
If this is the cause of your actions becoming public, you aren’t doing your job very well.
If you can’t protect yourselves, please tell me why I need to trust you to protect me?
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“My concern is that the release of information could potentially cause the losses of life to Americans. That to me, is a threshold that should be addressed.”
I think he was making a death threat against any Americans that would leak the report to the public as per standard government procedure.
That’s some scary shit right there, especially coming from someone who is likely going to be the committee chair?
Re: Chair
Considering that the chair of the science comity is an avowed creationist I would expect nothing less
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And they wonder why government is the problem
Let me see if I have this right
The Democraps could have release info on torture for the last 6 years but have failed to do so. There is really little sign that they would even if they keep the senate. Yet this little FUD article should convince us all that the Democraps should keep up the senate, you know, because they have done so well under Obama? No thanks.
Re: Let me see if I have this right
Very convincing argument – not.
I’m a Democratic supporter but I have absolutely ZERO interest in voting for any Democrat. I’ve been voting Republican since 2009 because I’ve had it with with Democrats constantly screwing with my constitutional rights and the Democrats full fledged support for continuing to renew The Patriot Act and not allowing it to “sunset” like it was supposed to back in 2005.
Democrats need to realize that THEY are responsible for the lack of faith that American voters have for the party.
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Congratulations on getting sick of the Democrats, and then doing the only thing that has no chance of changing anything.
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Hello paid for GOP spokesperson,
Do you really think so little of those around you? That tactic may work at your local Walmart, but most people are not fooled by such blather.
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“I’m a democratic supporter “
“I’ve been voting republican since 2009”
help me understand you, because frankly ,you’re confusing me as much as you’re confused, I’m being serious.
he is on their side until he finds out they have been spying on him and his staff despite promises they never would
I’m ashamed that torture supporters like Senator Richard Burr are elected to our government. Sickening.
If you’re anti torture, then you’re not voting Democrat or Republican because both parties support torture, even when they claim they’re not.
torture = bullying = abuse/
So the bad guys win again.
Par for the course in this cursed world.
Senate Torture Report
I have e-mailed Senator Feinstein and urged her to expedite the release of the Senate Torture Report before she loses her position as Chairman of the Select Committee on Intelligence. Once the Republicans take over the Committee, I fear the Torture Report will never see the light of day or if it does, it will be so heavily redacted by the CIA as to render it meaningless.