Mukasey Still Needs to Answer the Question
05 November 2007 5:12 pm by Taylor Marsh
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From Larry Johnson, along with Pat Lang, Valerie Plame Wilson and a host of
others:
Urgent:
Letter from Intelligence, Military, Diplomatic, and Law Enforcement ProfessionalsMEMORANDUM FOR: Chairman and Ranking Member Senate Committee on the Judiciary
FROM: Former U.S. Intelligence Officers
SUBJECT: Nomination of Michael Mukasey for Attorney General
Dear Senators Leahy and Specter,
Values that are extremely important to us as former intelligence officers
are at stake in your committee’s confirmation deliberations on Judge
Michael Mukasey. With hundreds of years of service in sensitive national security
activities behind us, we are deeply concerned that your committee may move
his nomination to the full Senate without insisting that Mukasey declare himself
on whether he believes the practice of waterboarding is legal. .. … ..… “He doesn’t know whether we use that technique [waterboarding]
or not,” the president said. Judge Mukasey wrote much the same in his
October 30 letter, explaining that he was unable to give an opinion on the
legality of waterboarding because he doesn’t know whether it is being
used: “I have not been made aware of the details of any interrogation
program to the extent that any such program may be classified and thus do
not know what techniques may be involved in any such program.” Whether
or not the practice is currently in use by U.S. intelligence, it should in
fact be easy for him to respond. All he need do is find out what waterboarding
is and then decide whether he considers it legal. … ..
Waterboarding is torture, which makes it immoral, not to mention illegal. Thanks
to Larry and all of his colleagues for stepping up when Senators Feinstein and Schumer would not.
