"We were kept in the dark. That's something that should never, ever happen again," said Feinstein.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said he agreed with Feinstein that the CIA should keep Congress informed. But Cornyn said the new assertion "looks to me suspiciously like an attempt to provide political cover" to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats. Pelosi has accused the CIA of lying to her in 2002 about its use of waterboarding, or simulated drowning, which many people, including Obama, consider torture.
There's too much conscious and unconscious dishonesty in the article to go through it bit by bit. So I thought it best to offer kudos to John Cornyn who, for the first time in his adult life, has made an accurate and apparently thoughtful observation. The Democratic investigation into the CIA torture program, which doesn't have a chance of accomplishing anything positive, does indeed look suspiciously like an attempt to provide political cover to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats. It's spiteful, too, and likely to trickle out in an embarrassing, wet, squishy and inconclusive way.
The best thing to do would be summon Pelosi to testify under oath. She has the right to defend herself against the accusations. It's intolerable, is what it is, for her to have this cloud of opprobrium hovering over her head. If necessary, grant her partial immunity and encourage her to sing in exchange for a reduced sentence. But for God's sake give the poor Speaker a chance to clear her good name!
Comments (4)
In the age of oligarchy, Congress's role is more and more pitiable.
Posted by hce | July 13, 2009 10:41 AM
Posted on July 13, 2009 10:41
Wasn't Caligula's horse called "Pelosi" too?
Posted by AlanSmithee | July 13, 2009 2:45 PM
Posted on July 13, 2009 14:45
Yes it was, Alan. There's been a lot of popular confusion over that ever since Mamet's light opera/musical historical romance, in which the horse's name was changed to "Cooter" to accommodate the auteur's unique vision. But you are correct. The name of the horse was indeed Pelosi.
HCE, yes it is. Contemptible too. I get on the verge of feeling sentimental about that sometimes, but in the nick of time they always manage to pull off another thoroughly despicable farce.
Posted by Al Schumann | July 13, 2009 5:13 PM
Posted on July 13, 2009 17:13
The whole premise of the torture investigations, regardless how they are conducted, is implicitly dishonest: making it seem, falsely, torture hasn't been a device employed by the imperium since the conquest of North America and the establishment of the United States.
Posted by Peter Ward | July 13, 2009 10:06 PM
Posted on July 13, 2009 22:06