Pelosi: Bush Administration Never Briefed Congress On Waterboarding

The Bush administration did not inform Congress that it had waterboarded detainees in classified briefings, after the agency had already done so, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) charged Thursday.

Pelosi told reporters that the administration officials only told her and those in a classified briefing in the fall of 2002 that they believed they had the legal authority to do so, based on Office of Legal Counsel memos which have recently been released by the Obama administration.

"In that or any other briefing...we were not, and I repeat, were not told that waterboarding or any of these other enhanced interrogation techniques were used," said Pelosi. "What they did tell us is that they had some legislative counsel...opinions that they could be used, but not that they would."

Pelosi said that the officials promised to inform Congress if they ever did waterboard a detainee, but never did so. Her assertion contradicts a recently released Senate committee report that cited CIA records to claim that senior members of Congress in both parties were briefed on the waterboarding, which had already been done to detainee Abu Zubaydah. Pelosi, in the strongest terms should could conjure, said the report was untrue and that she never approved, tacitly or otherwise, the waterboarding of detainees.

"Further to the point was that if and when they would be used, they would brief Congress at that time," said Pelosi. "I know that there's some different interpretations coming out of that meeting. My colleague, the chairman of the [intelligence] committee, has said, well if they say that it's legal you have to know they're going to use it. Well, his experience is that he was a member of the CIA and later went on to head the CIA. Maybe his experience is that they'll tell you one thing but may mean something else."

Pelosi is referring to then-GOP Rep. Porter Goss. "My experience was they did not tell us they were using that, flat out. And any, any contention to the contrary is simply not true," she said.

Republicans have recently been making the case that if Democrats insist on investigating torture, they must own up to their own culpability for remaining silent. Pelosi's insistence that she wasn't briefed on the occurrence of waterboarding is an effort to push back on that offensive.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) also pushed back against the GOP Thursday. "They know that this is all Cheney-driven and are making excuses," Reid told the Huffington Post.

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Comments

[Luke3]

this paper is in the tank for the dems. every article has defended pelosi and tried to mitigate every argument made to prove her guilt. lets start reporting huffpost, enough bias.

[harpen1]

I believe her. The past administration lied so much and so often I they have no credibility. The CIA tried to
drag Graham into their lies but, he had proof that they were wrong. Pelosi is paying the price for not pursuing the impeachment of George Bush. I hope Obama is taking notes. If they are let of the hook for their crimes they will see it as a weakness and try to destroy you.

[afgail]

While Bush's CIA, Pentagon, Department of Justice and White House were up to their eyeballs into torture and the Republicans controlled congress, they now want to blame Pelosi? What do they take us for idiots? Come on Pelosi, time for a special prosecutor to investigate war crimes.

[blairtone]

The problem with a war crimes investigation is that Pelosi would end up in the slammer along with Reid. We all know she's lying about the briefings.

[ibsteve2u]

Republican words: "[...] well if they say that it's legal you have to know they're going to use it"

Do you want any more proof that you can't let Republicans attain the White House?

There is nothing in U.S. law that forbids the use of nuclear weapons, you know.

[Luke3]

dems dropped nukes on japan.

[WoodyIV]

Any investigation should be the perrogative of the Justice Department. One of the things Obama campaigned on was the de-politicalization of the JD. Let the criminal investigation begin, and let the chips fall where they may.

[dems08]

Where's the evidence pubs?

Show us the evidence that Pelosi was told by the bushies that they had waterboarded.

[Gumby123]

Read it and weep....

Sept 9, 2007 Washington Post Article

Hill Briefed on Waterboarding in 2002
Joby Warrick/Dan Eggen Staff Writers

In September 2002, four members of Congress met in secret for a first look at a unique CIA program designed to wring vital information from reticent terrorism suspects in U.S. custody. For more than an hour, the bipartisan group, which included current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), was given a virtual tour of the CIA's overseas detention sites and the harsh techniques interrogators had devised to try to make their prisoners talk.

Among the techniques described, said two officials present, was waterboarding, a practice that years later would be condemned as torture by Democrats and some Republicans on Capitol Hill. But on that day, no objections were raised. Instead, at least two lawmakers in the room asked the CIA to push harder, two U.S. officials said.

Congressional leaders from both parties would later seize on waterboarding as a symbol of the worst excesses of the Bush administration's counterterrorism effort. The CIA last week admitted that videotape of an interrogation of one of the waterboarded detainees was destroyed in 2005 against advice of Justice Department/White House officials, provoking allegations that its actions were illegal and destruction was a coverup.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/08/AR2007120801664.html

[ibsteve2u]

Question: Have you ever in the past described "The Washington Post" as a "liberal rag"?

lolllll....

[ballina]

Remember that even if Congress were briefed, they cannot discuss or reveal the information. They don't even need to agree! When they are briefed on decisions like these, they are told, not asked. The only power they have is to pull funding - and the House conditioned the Iraq war funding 7 times, and it went no where!

[blairtone]

Not true, ballina - they are permitted to register any and all concerns, objections, etc, which are recorded in the meetings minutes.

[Okieborn]

The dominos are lined up and democrats and repubs. are trying to run for cover !!
Will someone plese just push the first domino !!!

[typhanie]

I find myself wanting to believe this, just because we know that Bush and his Crew never received a Declaration of WAR from Congress, so why would the feel they needed to discuss this with them.

[destruct1]

Please madame speaker...keep pursuing this....Pl­ease....I'­m begging you. There is a reason the white house is now doing the backstroke on this.....but please....you continue...push it madame...push it....

[blairtone]

Please madame speaker, please keep pushing - I'd like to see you behind bars for perjury and conspiracy to mislead congress

[montecarlo408]

Why do Republicans want to be bipartisan now? Bush showed no respect for the Democratic minority, and everyone knows it. If the memos justifying torture were just released, what makes anyone think that the Bush administration would allow a woman they absolutely hate (Pelosi) to be in on the conversation such as that? It's utterly ridiculous for the GOP to imply that a Democrat had ANY power whatsoever during the Bush administration.

Torture was their baby, and anyone who even spoke out against the war was seen as anti-American and unpatriotic. Of course, now those same people want to secede when they can't have THEIR way.

[AnnfromCA]

*tut tut*

Now, we want to see all the members who were present at the meetings. Pelosi's being called out for this piece of BS.

Time to pony up, Nancy. If you just lied, then you need to be accountable.

[Grunty1]

We do need to see who was present, but more importantly, we need to see the CONTENT of the meeting (which most assuredly doesn't exist).

Bush Offiical: We will institute "enhanced interrogation"
Rep: What does that mean?
Bush Official: Classified, no more questions. Now vote yes or we will call you names again.

[blairtone]

Sorry Grunt, but the content of the meetings does exist in recorded minutes - Pelosi would be very unhappy - and exposed - if the minutes were made public

[Kassandra]

Everyone please remember...it was Cheney who developed the "Unitary Executive Theory" AFTER he watched Nixon taken down by a free press and the anti war movement.
This guy knows how to play the system lie a violin.
He's been around for a looooong-ass time trying to turn the word "Democracy" into the word "Dictatorship". I'm of the opinion as of this moment that he has succeeded. And Obama is just as much of a puppet as all the rest of them since Kennedy was murdered.

[typhanie]

He should him and Rumsfeld were there when Nixon was going through it.

[outnow]

Was Pelosi briefed in writing about torture? That's why things are put in writing so that we don't have to accept the word of some Republican who wants to overthrow the constitution - Remember that Bush said that the Constitution was "just a Goddamn piece of paper." Therefore, when it came to briefing the House, shouldn't such an important issue have been briefed in writing?

The spoken words may fly but the written word remains. Pelosi looks and sounds disingenuous but why are such important issues in briefings not in writing? Pelosi trusted Bush? Now that she is getting screwed for the torture, she can begin to understand how the rest of us feel about her secret little backroom deals with these same fascist forces taking our rights away from us with her connivance.

The Democrats rubber-stamped the GWOT and the bailouts so it is fitting that for all eternity they should bear the moral responsibility for these flawed policies. I hear one or two Democrats really stand aginst torture. The rest are wimps trying to look tough as they enrich themselves off of outsourcing jobs and spending trillions on defense contractors.

There is no reason for Democrats to ever trust Republicans. Whether that involves a war of choice or handing over trillions to bankrupt banks. At this point, I do not trust Democrats. Next time, get it in writing, Pelosi. Or you will be blamed. And rightly so.

[Kassandra]

Prolly went up in Cheney's safe fire. Gosh! that sure didn't get much attention for long did it. I can't remember what the REAL distraction of that day was, but there sure wasn't any reporting on it except "OH, MY!"

[Grunty1]

[hat's why things are put in writing so that we don't have to accept the word of some Republican ]

That that is exactly why Rushpublicans are against transparency. They don't WANT their deeds documented.

[typhanie]

That is true. For all we know they could have already DESTORYED all evidence of what REALLY happened anyways.

[JustMe133]

Why even bring this up? Pelosi and others could not speak on these classified topics with anyone! People who disagreed with this had their hands tied! As far as them claiming they thought they had legal authority? Something this serious and they go by thought? Sorry, they did whatever they wanted to do, legal or not! Nothing changes the outcome and nothing changes the fact that our own laws were broken and if these people in such high positions don't understand our laws than what are they doing in these positions?

[outnow]

Where is her paper trail to protect herself from the charge of being complicit in torture. An oral conference about violations of the Geneva Conventions ban on torture should be witnessed and in writing. Pelosi should know not to even talk to war criminals without witnesses. She would have swung at Nuremberg based on what seems to be her tacit, if not express, approval of torture. She may also get indicted. She should step down because she took impeachment off the table and permitted Bush and his cronies to loot the Treasury on the way out of office.

Had Pelosi stood up and allowed the impeachment inquiry to go forward, the US would not be in recession because the rule of law would have pertained. Now the rule of law is gone from our country and we are being looted while Pelosi covers her own backside.

Maybe a war crimes tribunal will find that she had been complicit with torture anhd other crimes. She needed to take a stand and is now discrediting her own party. The Blue Dogs are not real democrats and neither are the DLC. We still have a Republican majority unless and until we clean house.

[dems08]

You mean she needs something to prove she was not told that the White House had already approved torture, and torture had already taken place?

How is it possible for someone to prove that?

[EyeDoc007]

So Bush could do anything he wanted, say boil children alive, and as long as it was classified she was duty-bound not to say anything?

[dems08]

Try reality.

Show evidence she was told the booshies were torturing prisoners.

[Grunty1]

The Rushpublicans are trying to place blame on Democrats and Pelosi in particular for their own lawlessness.

[WillieBoyz]

Make up your mind, either they can not talk about this (what you refer to as a crime) or they can (as in the President's press conference). The point that has Pelosi running for the hills, is did she know that this "criminal action" was going on or not? If she did know, why didn't she go record as opposing the "criminal action"? If she did not know, what was she doing? Now she's attacking the integrity of the CIA. I wonder why the President is not engaging this issue?