Speaker Nancy Pelosi yesterday delivered a broadside against the CIA and the Bush Administration, whom she accused of lying to her about the use of waterboarding in the interrogation of terror detainees. The coverage tends to cast the controversy as increasingly becoming a confrontation between Pelosi and the CIA. Most stories and analyses paint the timeline of what "Pelosi knew and when she knew it," as NBC Nightly News put it, as less than conclusive, but the coverage does suggest that the Speaker's statements may be in conflict with some of the evidence. NBC Nightly News described Pelosi as trying "to square what she's been saying against the CIA's differing accounts." Pelosi was shown saying, "The CIA briefed me only once on enhanced interrogation techniques in September 2002." ABC World News reports "Pelosi's words" yesterday "seem to directly contradict a declassified timeline of congressional briefings compiled by the CIA, which says Pelosi was told of the specific interrogation methods used."
On CNN's The Situation Room, chief national correspondent John King said that the "question for Speaker Pelosi right now is what did she know, when did she know it and when she did learn about the use of waterboarding, did she say or protest or do anything about it? ... And her answers have been inconsistent and they have evolved over time." The Hill also notes that "Republicans, who have reveled in watching Pelosi squirm, accused her of changing her story. One dubbed her account 'Pelosi 5.0.'"
Dana Milbank writes in the Washington Post, "Pelosi is a woman of many talents. Yesterday, she performed the delicate art of backtracking while walking sideways." The Politico notes House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Silvestre Reyes and other Democrats "told reporters Thursday that the GOP is waging a politically motivated attack on the speaker -- and that she has received an unfair ride in the press."
The Wall Street Journal says "Pelosi's accusations" also "drew a curt reply from the CIA." CIA spokesman George Little said, "It is not the policy of this Agency to mislead the United States Congress." On its front page, the Financial Times reports that that "by picking a fight with the CIA," the Speaker "appears to have added further fuel to the controversy and ensured that the issues of torture and terrorism remain high on the US political agenda." The Washington Post similarly says "the battle among lawmakers over who knew what, and when, coupled with the CIA's assertion that it had fully informed congressional leaders about classified matters, made it all but certain that the debate will drag into the summer."
More positive toward the Speaker is an AP dispatch that describes her as "the target of a campaign orchestrated in recent days by the House Republican leadership, which is eager to undercut her statements as well as stick Democrats with partial responsibility for the use of waterboarding."
In 2004, Schumer Appeared To Condone Torture In a blog entry in The Hill, Eric Zimmermann reports on "new audio unearthed of Sen. Chuck Schumer's (D-N.Y.) comments at a 2004 Senate Judiciary hearing" which "is likely to cause to heartburn for the New York Democrat." Schumer's comments show he "was much more willing to tolerate torture than most Democrats are today." Schumer said, "I think there are probably very few people in this room or in America who would say that torture should never, ever be used, particularly if thousands of lives are at stake."
The Washington Post reports that President Obama's plans to close "the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay...drew criticism from his party." While "the Democratic-controlled Senate Appropriations Committee passed a bill that includes $50 million to close the prison, as Obama promised during the campaign," it also "bans Obama from using the money to bring any of the 241 detainees to the United States, a move that administration officials have suggested might be necessary to get other countries to accept prisoners. The measure also requires the administration present Congress with a detailed plan on closing the prison before the money can be used."
The Washington Times also reports "Democratic leaders...balked at the administration's lack of a plan to relocate the prisoners," while Roll Call says Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin "told reporters earlier Thursday that he is not sure he has the votes on the Senate floor to retain" the Gitmo funds in the bill. McClatchy, meanwhile, notes a House war spending bill includes provisions directing "Obama to submit to Congress by Oct. 1 a 'comprehensive plan' for Guantanamo." In fact, The Hill reports, "even though the House bill mirrored many of the policies Obama sought, House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-Wis.) did not include money for the closure of the Guantánamo Bay prison in Cuba." The New York Times calls the omission in the House bill "a clear rebuke to Mr. Obama."
Kimberley A. Strassel writes in the Wall Street Journal that the Administration "is already four months into its one-year deadline, and transfers take time. The other option is for the administration to start triangulating, blaming Congress for not funding the program, and pushing back the deadline."
Meanwhile, the AP reports, "The Obama administration will not jeopardize Americans' safety by releasing dangerous Guantanamo prisoners into their communities, Attorney General Eric Holder promised Thursday." Holder "tried to assure nervous members of the House Judiciary Committee that safety is paramount in deciding what to do with the 241 prisoners there."
The Washington Post reports that "Holder also faced questions about whether he will prosecute CIA agents, Justice Department lawyers or Bush administration officials for their role in developing an interrogation program that critics assert violated international treaties and anti-torture statutes."
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The Los Angeles Times reports the Obama Administration "will announce Friday that it will continue to use military commissions to prosecute some terrorism suspects, current and former officials said -- reversing a campaign promise to abolish the controversial tribunals started under President George W. Bush." Human rights groups "reacted with anger Thursday, arguing that any trials under the commissions would be widely viewed as tainted and that the Obama administration was duplicating Bush's mistakes."
In a story about the "political fight over the interrogations" that has embroiled Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the Wall Street Journal says that Democrats "who opposed President George W. Bush's prosecution of the war on terror...increasingly are grappling with the dilemmas of managing that effort now that they run the White House and Congress." Another Wall Street Journal story reports that "an Obama administration official said the president, while serving in the Senate, 'had been supportive of a reformed version of military commissions that included increased due process protections as a means of bringing detainees to justice.'"
In fact, says the AP, the President is "reviving" the "fiercely disputed trial system he once denounced," but he is doing so "with new legal protections for terror suspects, US officials said Thursday." The Washington Post reports that according to "an administration official," Obama "will also seek a second suspension of legal proceedings at Guantanamo so it can refine the system, the official said. Obama had received a 120-day suspension from military judges in January."
CNN's The Situation Room reported that there "was a big meeting last Thursday night here at the White House, the White House Situation Room, kept very quiet," and "basically, they're realizing there's no easy way to try these suspects, so they're likely to bring back the military commissions but with new rights for the terror suspects."
The Washington Post reports former Bush Administration aide Karl Rove "will be interviewed today as part of a criminal investigation into the firing of U.S. attorneys during the presidency of George W. Bush, according to two sources familiar with the appointment." Rove "will be questioned by Connecticut prosecutor Nora R. Dannehy, who was named in September to examine whether former Justice Department and White House officials lied or obstructed justice in connection with the dismissal of federal prosecutors in 2006."
The AP reports Rove "and other Republican officials refused to be interviewed in an earlier Justice Department inquiry, which concluded that despite Bush administration denials, political considerations played a part in the firings of as many as four of the prosecutors." The New York Times reports Rove's "role in the firings, which occurred in 2006, has never been completely clear. White House colleagues have portrayed him as having had only a peripheral involvement in the events leading up to the dismissals, although Democrats have said that disclosed e-mail messages suggest he was informed of general plans for them and briefed on specifics regarding one or more of the prosecutors."
The Politico reports the "planned interview of Rove appeared to be one of a series of interviews Dannehy has conducted with Justice Department officials and others involved in the decision to dismiss the prosecutors. There is no indication that the special prosecutor is singling Rove out, a source close to the probe said." The Wall Street Journal reports Robert Luskin, "Mr. Rove's attorney, said Mr. Rove intends 'to cooperate fully and voluntarily with her investigation.' Mr. Luskin declined to comment on whether Mr. Rove would be interviewed."
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The Wall Street Journal runs a round up of competitive 2010 Senate contests, quoting the Cook Report's Jennifer Duffy saying that the GOP will be "playing defense" in Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, New Hampshire and Ohio while Democrats will be doing so in Connecticut and Illinois, though the races in Delaware, Colorado (both Democratic-controlled), and Louisiana (GOP-controlled) "may prove competitive."
The Hill reports that Democrat Joe Torsella "is exiting the race for Pennsylvania's Senate seat, stepping aside for newly Democratic" Sen. Arlen Specter and "clearing the primary field -- for the moment, at least." Roll Call adds Torsella "stressed that he had not been pressured to drop his campaign. 'No one asked me to take this step, and I haven't asked for, or been offered anything, to do it,' Torsella said in his announcement. 'Just like my decision to run in the first place, it simply feels to me and my family like the right thing to do.' Both the White House and the" Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee "backed Specter after he announced he was switching parties, leaving Torsella to run what would appear to be a quixotic campaign against the president and Senate leaders." The Politico says that "all attention will turn squarely on" Rep. Joe Sestak (D), "who has been publicly talking about a Senate challenge and said he will make a final decision in the next several months."
The AP reports that Rand Paul (R), son of Rep. Ron Paul (R), yesterday formed a committee to explore a run for the seat currently held by Kentucky Sen. Jim Bunning (R). The Louisville Courier-Journal adds Paul "has said he doesn't plan to run if Bunning does. But he said he believes Bunning may be staying in the race now simply to clear the field for Secretary of State Trey Grayson, a Bunning ally who is also interested in the seat."
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Jay Leno: "At the White House the other night, President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama hosted a night of poetry and music featuring musicians, authors and poets, to which President Bush said, 'Now, that's torture.'"
Jay Leno: "Oh, and speaking of torture, I love this. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi now says the CIA and President Bush misled her on waterboarding. Yeah. Apparently she was misled by the Bush Administration. So she spends eight years telling everybody how dumb President Bush is, and the minute they're in trouble, 'He fooled me! I had no idea! He tricked me!'"
Craig Ferguson: "To raise money for California, Governor Schwarzenegger says he's willing to sell some of the state's aging landmarks, like San Quentin Prison. ... So far, the only bid has come from Dick Cheney. Apparently, he wants to use it as a vacation home in the summer. 'I can just relax in the atmosphere.'"
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