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Rockefeller: CIA Doc Is Wrong -- Agency Never Briefed Me Individually
Sen. Jay Rockefeller's office has released a new statement on what he was and wasn't told by the CIA about torture.
Says Rockefeller, referring to the CIA document released last week:
We are not in a position to vouch for the accuracy of the document. We can tell you that in the particular entry stating that Senator Rockefeller was briefed on February 4th of 2003 with an asterisk also noting him as later individually briefed -- that is not correct, or at least is not being reported correctly by people reading the document. The Democratic staff director attended a briefing on Feb. 4, but Senator Rockefeller was not present and was not later briefed individually by anyone in the intelligence community. He was first personally briefed by the intelligence community on Sept 4th, 2003.
As we noted last week, the document mentions a February 2003 briefing, at which, it said, lawmakers were told that we had waterboarded Abu Zubaydah. An asterisk indicated that Rockefeller hadn't been at the briefing, but had been individually briefed later, presumably on the same details.
But Rockefeller's new statement -- unlike the one his office gave us last week -- suggests that the individual briefing never took place, and that he wasn't briefed at all for another seven months.
The Senate Intelligence committee's investigation of torture, which was begun under Rockefeller's chairmanship, is ongoing.
Josh
Zachary
Look, if he knew what was going on, reguardless if he was "individually briefed" or not or had suspicions and did not investigate then he is as much a part of the problem as those who carried it out. Cowardice is the word that comes to mind.
Like I said yesterday in reguards to Cheney, the rot must be removed. Reguardless of political leanings.
May 12, 2009 12:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
The rats are scurrying for cover.
May 12, 2009 12:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
Who the hell cares what Rockefeller or Pelosi knew.. the fact remains that BUSH and CHENEY ordered torture...both the military and CIA carried out that order....thats the crime, torture is against the law, both National and International Law ...the big crime is not who knew or might have known, its the CRIME ....don't fall for the "rights" bait and switch
May 12, 2009 12:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
You are so right. If the Dems knew, fine, investigate them too. But don't let Bush/Cheney off the hook.
May 12, 2009 1:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thanks. I was struggling with all of this and what you say makes a lot of sense.
May 12, 2009 3:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
Zachary, good that your on top of this--I do think it's peripheral to the main call for a complete investigation--it's he said she said DC politics and Americans deserve a government that holds the rule of law in higher regard than political charades.
May 12, 2009 1:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Chabuka
You are correct that Bush and Cheney ordered it and had it carried out. But those who knew and did nothing have a price to pay also. This is about restoring the United States, not just political gain.
May 12, 2009 1:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
This was the parlor game, they briefed the Dems to only what they wanted them to know so they could say later they had full cover, but this is not what happened---they said we got more aggressive interrogation techiniques that are legal---not mentioning well it is US Torture techniques
sorry, let them face the full measure of the music.
May 12, 2009 1:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
The whole goddamned thing sounds fishy. I'm at a point where I don't trust ANYONE in Washington.
All too often all they care about is keeping their seats.
May 12, 2009 1:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Gus is correct. The Nuremberg trials convicted those who knew war crimes were committed but did nothing to stop them. This realization is sure to make it more difficult to get action from Congress and maybe the reason Obama doesn't push: the pragmatist doesn't want a Congressional implosion blocking all legislation. Action can be taken later. Cheney is busy trying to change the whole context of the debate from torture to effectiveness of torture. But England, Spain and Italy have or are taking action based on rendition/torture.
May 12, 2009 1:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Okay, so that's 3 senior Dems who seriously dispute this "leaked memo" of questionable provenance. Either we assume they're lying to cover their asses, or we finally begin to question WHO wrote this document and WHEN it was actually written.
Keep in mind that Porter Goss and his despised and reprehensible "Gosslings" were running the show at CIA. As Chabuka and RWN have noted, this is part of an intentional program to set up Dem "co-conspirators" by asserting "they were briefed" and therefore, MUST have approved. At least, they didn't exert nonexistent power to "stop" the practice of which they therefore MUST have approved.
Parlor game is certainly a more polite description of this process than I would use. What's so annoying is that Republicans aren't even very good at this sort of misdirection. The "media" are so useless, or complicit, that they contribute to the farce. Then we get all kinds of otherwise progressive types who get distracted by the ABSOLUTELY MEANINGLESS question of what did they know and when did they know it.
REPUBLICANS TORTURED! EAGERLY and EARLY and repellently OFTEN! We are all too eager to blame the Democrats for "not stopping" the torture. Let's not forget the context folks.
Democrats were (initially NOT even) allowed to hold hearings in the basement. They were threatened with nucular annihilation if they dared to filibuster anything. Terr'rist lovin' Dems were in real jeopardy of legal action by the Ashcroft, then GONZO, InJustice Dept. should they "reveal national secrets". Why the Hell should we be accepting, at face value, leaked documents by "unknown" patriots at the CIA!! as somehow truthful?
If you do, listen, I've got a big blue bridge spanning the Delaware River. It's been in the family for generations. It needs a little paint, but I can sell it to you for a song. A real moneymaker! Heh! If it works for them...
May 12, 2009 1:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
yeah. my first thought was no wonder Cheney's out there saying bring it on and Pat Buchanan says that there are people at the CIA that aren't telling Obama things that they will tell Cheney etc. The CIA has their own 'cover our asses' issues as far as destroying evidence. I don't know what is valid evidence at this point when it comes to the CIA...
Can Switzerland come in and moderate or something? I think we've run out of impartial instititutions to call upon...
May 12, 2009 3:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
What's the deal with the CIA being so partial to Cheney and not sharing information with Obama when Obama AND Holder have already stated their positions not to go after CIA agents following orders?
Gosslings are no longer at CIA I thought.
May 13, 2009 12:16 AM | Reply | Permalink
Gosslings are no longer at CIA I thought
They don't fly, they burrow.
May 13, 2009 12:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
I admit I am not as informed as most of you. I do try to learn by reading and listening. I just want to let the people here at TPM that you have well written,and informed group of people here, and this includes most of the bloggers.
Thanks
Bob
May 12, 2009 4:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Who can believe Rockefeller?
The entire time that he was sitting on the Senate Intelligence Committee as a member, he was critical of Republican Senator Roberts handling and evasion of an upfront report of what the Bush administration knew prior to 9/11 and how it acted on that evidence.
Then, when Rockefeller becomes the head of that same committee, he too was working his bottom off to hide the same evidence.
Americans aren't being fooled.
This entire thing is nothing more than a concerted effort by both Republicans and Democrats (first Bush and now, Obama) to protect the members of their own political partys from their exposure and approval of the illegal torture that took place and their own possible prosecution -- Rockefeller, himself, included.
May 12, 2009 4:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Let us not forget that Pelosi, Rockefellar and the Democrats were in the minority then. There was very little they could do. Also, during those years the general mood of the country was that anyone who said anything against the Bush regime was a traitor.
Does that absolve them? No, of course not. But it does put it into perspective. This was a Republican operation from stem to stern and it is the Republicans we need to go after.
May 13, 2009 12:03 AM | Reply | Permalink
that he wasn't briefed at all for another seven months.
that's his fuckin' excuse??! That his staff director was briefed, and he never had the curiousity (assuming he never debriefed the staff guy at all in any systematic way!) to enquire about the topic, bubbling with daily controversy as it was (after all, as has been repeatedly said, the motherfuckers already know how we sodomized, brutalized, infantilized, operationally lobotomized and otherwise crippled them mentally and phiscally for life! The only question is why the people who paid the salaries of the perpetrators are not at least entitled to know what the fuck they bought.!
May 13, 2009 12:40 AM | Reply | Permalink
Irrespective of whether it exculpates him , Rockefeller is right to point to this error.As should anyone else who finds an error. Facts are facts ,errors are errors.(My contribution today to the wisdom of the universe. You're welcome)
If this turns out to be the only error , it's probably irrelevant and arguable that this is just a smoke screen on Rockefeller's part.
If instead others , Pelosi or whoever, similarly point out errors , it's time to investigate the investigators.
May 13, 2009 7:23 AM | Reply | Permalink
Not to defend either Rockefeller or Pelosi (Congressional Dems have no reason to be proud of their performance during the Bush administration), I'd like to remind all of us of the uncanny ability of the Bush White House is creating a network of lies and cover-ups specifically designed to mislead you and me and Congress. We shouldn't dismiss this lightly as we look back at who knew what when.
Nor should we dismiss the power of the lie machine created and operated by the Bush administration. That they should have a sideline in deluding Democratic legislators in a way which would later catch those legislators in apparent net of "lies" wouldn't come as a surprise to me. Not in the least. Possibly Cheney and Co. are jumping with glee as we jump to conclusions.
May 14, 2009 1:03 PM | Reply | Permalink