This Space for Rent

Lovely

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.

"The briefer was specifically asked if the methods were tough enough," said a U.S. official who witnessed the exchange.

(damning accusation via The Washington Post)

You would think that members an opposition party that was already being painted as the spawn of Satan would have the good sense to violently disapprove of torture when Maximum Leader Genius's inquisitors chirpily announced that this is what they were doing, but, no, this is the Stupid Party we're talking about and if there's anything it's good at doing it's good at buying into the National Socialist equivalent of a Wile E Coyote roadrunner catching plan, then whining that they didn't know that war crimes were war crimes because

Congressional officials say the groups' ability to challenge the practices was hampered by strict rules of secrecy that prohibited them from being able to take notes or consult legal experts or members of their own staffs.

Since, as you know, it's too hard for a member of the Stupid Party congressional caucus to do any research on their own, and that would take away from the atmosphere of bipartisan comity that they were (and are) trying to maintain with people that would be happy to see them dead.

Congratulations, Democrats, you're making my plan to vote a straight SPUSA ticket in perpetuity seem like a better idea every time I read the newspaper. Is there any way (other than the self-pitying tone of your "we're sooooo helpless with our Senate and Congressional majorities!" whining) that you're different from the Republicans?

(WaPo article via correntewire)