Jay Rockefeller Casts Doubt On CIA Pelosi Briefing Memo

Politico:

Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), who was chairman of the intelligence committee in 2002, is the latest Democrat to seriously question the accuracy of the CIA memo detailing Congressional briefings on waterboarding and enhanced interrogations.

In my reporting for the Pelosi piece this morning, co-written with John Bresnahan, a Rockefeller aide took issue with two characterizations made in the memo, which was requested by House Republicans and released by CIA director Leon Panetta last week.

Read the whole story: Politico

Comments

[milo9]

Pelosi, Reid, Rockerfeller, Feinstein, they knew everything, as many, many, of us have been saying.. This is the sort of dirt that has made them such roll overs for the last eight years. Have you forgotten? There will be no better time to force Reid, Pelosi, Feinstein, and Rockerfeller from their seats of influence and bring in some real progressives, progressives with spine.

[freddiefreeloader]

The Bush dictatorship set a trap for the Democrat congress and then fell in it.

[drumz]

This is simply another version of BBBut Clinton. It is right out of the reichies playbook; defend by deflecting.

[Spencaa]

All of you are so quick to jump on the anti-pelosi bang wagon with the GOP you don't stop to think they may be doing this to hang her up to dry. Apparently it would be illegal if Bush DIDN'T tell her, so they have to make it look like they did.

[Yermammy]

Sounds to me as if you're arguing for investigations. Why are you assuming things you can't know?

[arspar183]

and why are u assuming that he's assuming?

[SurrealPumpkin]

Investigations are what you do when you don't know.

[John Lalonde]

Replace the 'I' in CIA with a 'Y' and you get to the truth of the matter.

[Yermammy]

I hope you realize that this is just a distraction folks. The corporate media (who led us into war by not questioning Bush's agenda) is complicit in the War Crimes that were committed and by casting doubt about certain Democrats, they think this will derail investigations. I hope you're not as stupid as they think you are. (Disclaimer: Fox News believers don't qualify as informed people, but if you believe any of them totally, you are gullible).
Investigations are in order Mr. Holder. Do your job.

[jadeba]

Agree. Given that the briefings were all classified and no one could discuss contents of the briefings, it's stupid to go after Pelosi. All of this takes us further away from getting to the heart of the matter - and prosecution of those responsible for the reprehensible policies advocating torture.

[Yermammy]

I'm not very sympathetic to someone that blocked impeachment, voted for FISA, the Patriot Act, the Military Commissions Act, or funding wars she promised to stop. That said, whose to say she doesn't have a blackmail file on her from the NSA wiretapping? There's many questions and only an independent investigation will glean light on this subject of War Crimes. It's NOT an opton, regardless of how the media is attempting to frame this. Our treaties demand it, and the World is watching. War Crimes have NO statute of limitations, so this isn't going away. EVER.

[JTCan]

You are SO right...thanks for that post. This smoke screen is just a way to keep the focus off who ordered it...who is ultimately responsible.

[SurrealPumpkin]

Watergate started with a simple burglary. It unraveled an administration.

It doesn't really which little thread finally starts unraveling as long as one of them does. Who knows, the question of "did she or didn't she" may be what finally cracks this mess wide open.

[justoverit333]

Look if they can alter elections they can alter memos.

[Twopennygal]

What "alter"? They probably reported in the memo that they fully briefed the committees when they actually didn't. Since the documents were classified, they certainly didn't have to worry that they would be challenged as to their veracity.

[SurrealPumpkin]

The memo notes the presence of aides, which means there can't have been a full briefing, the aides don't have the necessary security clearance.

[McFlipFlop]

Yep.

[blukazoo]

What memo? Apparently there is no record of the meeting agenda and no notes were taken. Instead the CIA states the facts based on the "best recollection" of the agents that attended the meeting years ago. Gee, I wonder if they're mis-remembering on purpose or by accident?

[OliverTwist]

I sympathize that many government officials and even regular people may not want to be wrongly characterized as officially in the know regarding CIA and militarty torture activities.

Still, the fact is that only those who refused to read the news or listen to what was said or didn't bother to think about what they had learned could fail to correctly deduce that torture was policy and was being carried out on Arabs and Muslims.

I'm sure that most were reassured that torture was probably not a technique that was likely to be applied to other people like themselves and so were no inspired to think much about the implications.

Too bad.

[jadeba]

Years ago, I heard a report on All Things Considered (NPR) about how the Bushies had redefined torture. Someone wrote a book about it. This was years ago and, of course, the msm were silent. I'm a news junkie - I don't remember seeing anything (other than on DemocracyNow!) about any of this.

[uvymopka]

I think Nancy Pelosi actually deserves our praise. She was the guardian of waterboarding. She knew it was happening, and she didn't say anything. Without Pelosi's cooperation and silence, waterboarding would not have been used. She deserves a medal.

[Yermammy]

But you would say that. You obviously have no regard for law or treaty. Or for Ronald Reagan, for that matter.
Ronald Reagan: vengeful, score-settling, Hard Left ideologue
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2009/05/01/shifts/index.html
It's hard to argue that torture is acceptable when a Republican President signed the Convention on Torture treaty. You might want to choose another hill to die on because on this argument you are finished.

[jesseandrews]

God these scumbags were not and still are not covered by law. The Genevia Convection does not apply to them, it only applies to arm forces or civilans of countries. These scumbags were not fighting for a country or flag so are not covered. That is why no countries want them, they are not POW but terrorist.

[justoverit333]

No, I think you're wrong. I don't think she knew about it.
How Graham and Rockefeller are speaking out as well.
The memo was altered. Pelosi didn't know.

[Yermammy]

You THINK, but you don't KNOW. It's great to be loyal to family, friends and your dog- but politicians answer to US, the people that put them there. Your cheerleading for Democrats that might possibly be complicit (one's that failed us on FISA, ending the wars, supported the Patriot Act, the Military Commissions Act and TARP, btw) is just as foolish as Bush apologists that argue he kept us safe for eight years when in fact we are LESS safe. Please drop your pom poms and push for investigations of Bush's (et alia) War Crimes. The truth will determine who's guilty and who is not. Not you or I.

[jesseandrews]

Bull.

[bygollymissmolly]

According to the right wing she knew about waterboarding. According to Pelosi and other people who were there, she didn't know that it was happening.

As far as her saying anything about it, she was bound to secrecy because the briefing was classified. Are you advocating that members of congress who are in on classified briefings leave the briefing and then tell the public what they heard in the briefing?

And if you think that no one would have been waterboarded if Pelosi had blown the whistle on them, you are in serious need of mental health care. If Pelosi had said anything, the Bush Crime Family would have denied it and called her a liar. It would have been her word against theirs and at the time the US public was still believing the lies they were being told.

[BrettnCalgary]

I was reading at National Review Online (yes, I do link to it, sometimes I need to see the other side, just to be reminded why they are to be loathed) and an article there claims she must be lying because Porter Goss received the same briefing and knew exactly what was going on. I've seen nothing further on that anywhere else, not that I have really looked.

[jadeba]

Sure, Pelosi could have stopped the bushies! It's all her fault! Your comment is ridiculous.

[brandnewstuff]

Look It is Jay Rock!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsUM7SkYMMM

Holy Grail Holy Smack

[brandnewstuff]

No decent human being wants to be connected with new release of Holy Grail--

Lets see- Evil Bastrds- John Brennan, Micheal Hayden and John Rizzo three men attached to the worse acts in Modern History- no one can vouche for anything NOW

[jsgaetano]

Does this even matter?

Pelosi being breifed doesn't make Bush's torture program any less illegal. Or his secret prison system. Or his kidnapping program. Or his wiretapping program. Or his imprisonment of US citizens.

[Yermammy]

Or imprisonment of foreign journalists at Guantanamo. Or his illegal war in Iraq. Or his politicizing the Justice Dept.

[Grunty1]

They are just doing what the Party of Personal Responsibility does best; point fingers at other people.

[doctorkosan]

Pelosi is not the focal issue regarding the USA torturing. We need to investigate, charge and try those who broke the law.
The Pelosi debate is pure distraction. it is equivalent to the police angsting over who loaned the get-away car to the bank robbers.

[bygollymissmolly]

It is a distraction perpetuated by the right. They have no excuse for what they have done and they are desperately trying to muddy the waters by bringing Pelosi into the argument.

[BabblingBrooks]

Rockefeller is running for cover!

I wasn't there, and even if I was, I heard nothing! NOOOOTTTTTHINGGGGG!
--Sergeant Schultz, Hogan's Heroes.

-Jay Rockefeller, Senate's Cowards.

[justoverit333]

Evidently you totally trust the Party of No.
Not me. I want them to keep digging.
Something's fishy here.

[Simon Templer]

It's fun to watch the Dems lie and run for cover.

Ye-haaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaa

[mcantwell]

Try reading the article. Even the dates are incorrect in the report.

[Yermammy]

Was Simple Simon taken? Ye-haaaaaa­aaaaaaaaa!
The Drudge Report siren is going off! Quick, there's a new Sarahcuda article up and you don't want to be late!!!