Military and FBI Leaders Reject Torture and Support Closing Guantanamo Bay
Gitmo has caused us problems, there’s no question about it. I oversee a region in which the existence of Gitmo has indeed been used by the enemy against us. We have not been without missteps or mistakes in our activities since 9/11. And again, Gitmo is a lingering reminder for the use of some in that regard.”
http://thinkprogress.org/security/2009/05/29/43073/petraeus-values/
"In the cases where that is not true [where torture takes place or international human rights groups aren't granted access to detention sites] we end up paying a price for it, ultimately," he added. "Abu Ghraib and other situations like that are non biodegradable. They don't go away. The enemy continues to beat you with them like a stick.... Beyond that, frankly, we have found that the use of interrogation methods in the army field manual that was given the force of law by Congress, that that works."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/21/petraeus-takes-on-cheneyi_n_470608.html
Former Secretary Gates Supports shutdown of GITMO
“Defense Secretary Robert Gates says the Obama administration had no choice but to order the shutdown of the prison at Guantanamo because “the name itself is a condemnation” of U.S. anti-terrorism strategy. “
Associated Press, May 2009 http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/may/22/gates-defends-decision-close-gitmo-prison/
Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral Mike Mullen: Gitmo “Needs to be Closed”
VIDEO: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/video?id=7665191
Admiral Mike Mullen On Waterboarding: Military Personnel Should Not Be Involved In Waterboarding.
During a November 1, 2007 press conference, Admiral Mike Mullen was asked his opinion about waterboarding. A reporter asked: “What is your professional military opinion about whether U.S. military personnel should be ever involved in waterboarding activities?” In his response, Admiral Mullen said: “…from the military standpoint, these are the kinds of activities, specifically, that military personnel -- I would not expect them to be involved in, with respect to waterboarding.”
November 1, 2007, Political Transcript Wire – Secretary Gates and Admiral Mullen Press Conference
Ali Soufran, Former FBI Supervisory Special Agent
“From my experience – and I speak as someone who has personally interrogated many terrorists and elicited important actionable intelligence– I strongly believe that it is a mistake to use what has become known as the ‘enhanced interrogation techniques,’ a position shared by many professional operatives, including the CIA officers who were present at the initial phases of the Abu Zubaydah interrogation.”
“There is no way to know whether the detainee is being truthful, or just speaking to either mitigate his discomfort or to deliberately provide false information. As the interrogator isn’t an expert on the detainee or the subject matter, nor has he spent time going over the details of the case, the interrogator cannot easily know if the detainee is telling the truth. This unfortunately has happened and we have had problems ranging from agents chasing false leads to the disastrous case of Ibn Sheikh al-Libby who gave false information on Iraq, al Qaeda, and WMD.”
Testimony to Senate Judiciary Committee, 2009
The Truman National Security Project is a leadership institute which recruits, trains, and positions progressives to lead on national security. More at www.TrumanProject.org.
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