Listen to McCain on waterboarding
The right wing hurls yet another nasty invective; this time directed at those who oppose “enhanced interrogation techniques” or as it is more commonly referred to, torture. Robert Graham, quoting the discredited Newsmax organization as his source, states “the waterboarding of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed stopped ‘enormous’ terrorist plots and his interrogation led to the courier who in turn led the CIA to Osama bin Laden’s hideout in Pakistan.’”
He goes on to say that “waterboarding does no physical harm, but it can lead to important intelligence information.” Really? Huh, that’s not what “liberal pantywaist” John McCain had to say in a recent op-ed. The trail to bin Laden did not begin with a disclosure from Khalid Sheik Mohammed, who was waterboarded 183 times. Senator McCain goes on to state, “In fact, the use of ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ on Khalid Sheik Mohammed produced false and misleading information. He specifically told his interrogators that Abu Ahmed had moved to Peshawar, got married and ceased his role as an al-Qaida facilitator, none of which was true. According to the staff of the Senate intelligence committee, the best intelligence gained from a CIA detainee — information describing Abu Ahmed al-Kuwaiti’s real role in al-Qaida and his true relationship to bin Laden — was obtained through standard, noncoercive means.”
I am not a fan of Senator McCain, but I believe his experience as a POW subjected to torture in Vietnam gives him indisputable credibility. I commend his courage for speaking out given the predictable political backlash from members of his own party.
Greg Newlin
Naperville