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|NEXT STORY »

Cheney: Learn From CIA, Don't Investigate Interrogators

Probes are 'outrageous political act,' says ex-VP

By Mat Probasco| Posted Aug 30, 09 6:49 AM CDT|

(Newser) – The Obama administration should be asking CIA interrogators how they managed to ward off terrorist attacks for 8 years rather than investigating possible breaches of law while doing so, former Vice President Dick Cheney told Fox News today. Investigating interrogators is an "outrageous political act" that will do long-term damage, said Cheney.

US Attorney General Eric Holder appointed a special prosecutor last week to investigate whether the harsh interrogation techniques were criminal. "They're out there now threatening to disbar the lawyers who gave us the legal opinions. They're going to go out and investigate the CIA personnel who carried out those investigations," Cheney said.

[Images (1)]

[Quotes (1)]

Former Vice President Dick Cheney speaks at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington earlier this year. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)

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"The approach of the Obama administration should be to come to those people who were involved in that policy and say, 'How did you do it? What were the keys to keeping this country safe over that period of time?'"
- Dick Cheney

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44 comments

VIEWING:

Doctor_Zaius
Aug 30, 09 6:53 AM CDT

Cheney: Learn from CIA, Don't Investigate Interrogators. Translation: I'm scared shitless that people will start digging up the things even I can't justify. Reply

+28

IN RESPONSE:

Fondue
Aug 30, 09 9:00 AM CDT

...the things I can't hide anymore because the GOP is out of power.

+12

IN RESPONSE:

Reader64481089
Aug 30, 09 1:25 PM CDT

I do not care what party he is from, the man at heart is a puss bag and in dire need of prosecution for his crimes. Valerie Plume, Guantánamo Bay and those are only a couple things we are privy to who knows what else this carpet bagged did while in office or his entire life for that matter as he has the morals of a scorpion and a scorpion will eat it's young to save it's own hide

| 0 minutes ago

SilenceDogood
Aug 30, 09 7:02 AM CDT

This nonsense is about retribution. Bill Clinton was impeached for being a smuck, and now the left leaning weenies want to show that Bush and his admin were just as bad. The Liberals hate the CIA and the Armed Forces because they want to believe we can all live peacefully in this wonderful Green, carbon free world. It ain’t so. We need the CIA and the Armed Forces to protect America. We also need to protect them from over zealous reformers that would destroy our guardians. There are appropriate Senate and House committees to deal with these issues, let them do their job quietly. If not, we will see an exodus of quality people from all of these branches, and that is something our Nation cannot afford. We need the CIA and the Armed Forces intact and strong. Reply

-24

IN RESPONSE:

myvoice
Aug 30, 09 7:15 AM CDT

Yes I agree we do need the Military and the CIA... however if they violate human rights, they should be investigated! NO ONE is above the law! And this is not about Clinton... It is about doing the right thing. We Americans have been so clouded by right an wrong under Bush and Cheney!!! Why is anyone still listing to this man on the run? He is afraid and rightfully should be!!!!

+16

IN RESPONSE:

UrUndertaker
Aug 30, 09 7:16 AM CDT

"Bill Clinton was impeached " Excuse me? Was that in your Birther world in which you dwell perhaps? Although Impeachment hearings because he got a b/j were held BY THE SAME GUYS SLEEPING AROUND ON THEIR WIVES NOW....so if Clinton didn't have a full sex act does that make him less a "smuck" (your word) than the Republican who is in love with his mistress??? Just asking....Actually the investigation is being held due to the fact RULES and LAWS were VIOLATED?? Hello? Are you so far gone that rules and laws no longer matter to Republicans? WTF, get a grip, you are even worse than talking to a kitchen table, a table serves a function....you do not

+15

IN RESPONSE:

UrUndertaker
Aug 30, 09 7:19 AM CDT

Anyways...to complete the point yes hearings were held (politically motivated) and tax payer money wasted but he was nt impeached...Thanks, now go back to Birther world

IN RESPONSE:

ObjectiveObserver
Aug 30, 09 7:48 AM CDT

Had the law been changed prior to these interrogations to encompass the methods used, this would not be an issue. The fact remains that these interrogators broke the law, and should be investigated accordingly. No entity, including the Vice President or the Armed Forces, is allowed to operate outside the law as it stands at the time.

IN RESPONSE:

RogerMohajir
Aug 30, 09 8:58 AM CDT

Sorry, Undertaker, but Bill Clinton WAS impeached. He was not convicted in the Senate, but he was impeached in the House. Was it stupid and unjustified? Yes. But it did happen. Let's not go rewriting history the way Cheney is wont to do.

IN RESPONSE:

Observer
Aug 30, 09 9:16 AM CDT

Hey dickless - Bush and Darth Vadar were so much worse than Clinton on so many levels that you are stupid to even compare them. This isn't about the CIA - it is about legality. Bush/Cheney violated international laws and are a war criminals. They manufactured false evidence to embroil us in an unending unwinnable war. Killed tens of thousands of Iraqis who had nothing to do with 9/11. The trillions of dollars we have been spending is completely pissed away and is bleeding generations of Americans. Not to mention the scale of reactionary right wing born-again Christian policies that screwed up domestic harmony for eight years. All Clinton did was get a blowjob in a closet.

IN RESPONSE:

oldgoat
Aug 31, 09 2:18 AM CDT

This country is suppose to be a country of laws and when the laws are broken they should be investigated. Did the CIA actually prevent an attack throught their use of torture? We'll probably never know, but many experts in interogation say that it isn't the most effective manner to get info, including those like McCain who says that the tactics actually worked to increase the AQ membership. I believe that Cheney is more worried that he will be found to be involved and maybe charged.

| 0 minutes ago

polstroad
Aug 30, 09 7:09 AM CDT

Dear Dogwood: we have seen an exodus. Bush privatized so many things that taxpayers now fund training for CIA and then the new people go over to private firms to do the stuff at much better pay. Privatizing is what Bush and gang was all about. If Dems so badk, why did Armed forces get pay raise and better V.A. help under Obama that they did not get under the WarLord? Odd that cheney, always in hiding, now everywhere and mouthing off, daily. If we are to ignore the previous administration's actions, then what the hell is he mouthing off so much for--he is history. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

SilenceDogood
Aug 30, 09 7:16 AM CDT

I don’t know this for certain, but I believe that as Vice-President he respected his position and let his boss set policy and address issues. As today we don’t hear from Biden, thank God, but from Net Zero. I think the leash is off and Cheney is saying what he has wanted to; if you listen to his words they make a lot of sense. Try to forget he is a conservative for a moment, just listen to the ideas and maybe we can all learn something of value.

-12

IN RESPONSE:

odowd80
Aug 30, 09 8:05 AM CDT

@SD: Ideas? Cheney doesn't offer ideas, unless you count veiled threats, of course. He's made his position clear: "If you investigate us, terrorists will attack us again." That is not an "idea."

IN RESPONSE:

Fondue
Aug 30, 09 9:04 AM CDT

What does $9.95/mon internet have to do with this?

| 0 minutes ago

RockyPneumonia
Aug 30, 09 7:39 AM CDT

Uh, yes, Clinton WAS impeached (which, in essence, means "indicted"); he just wasn't convicted...because "I don't like him" is not an impeachable offense. Largely, the Clinton impeachment was payback for Nixon; the difference being that Nixon actually committed an impeachable offense. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

SilenceDogood
Aug 30, 09 8:39 AM CDT

You are correct, we don't like him and Nixon was an ass.

-4

| 0 minutes ago

polstroad
Aug 30, 09 8:15 AM CDT

Clinton got a blowjob, perhaps, and balanced the budget. Bush gave it to us up the ass and Cheney, dark lord of the underworld , tapped our phones, got us into a war based on lies;and broke the laws on torture...When Clinton left office, what was employment and economics ? very sound. When Bush left, recession, unemployment, failed banks, and on and on and on Reply

+15

IN RESPONSE:

Observer
Aug 30, 09 9:31 AM CDT

Correcto - well said

| 0 minutes ago

SilenceDogood
Aug 30, 09 8:38 AM CDT

Actually it was a Republican Congress that balanced the budget and Clinton had the good fortune to be the sitting President during robust economic times. We are all aware that the President has little immediate effect on the economy, witness the effect Zero is having today. The truth is that this is all party line party line politics as usual. I am not condoning or condemning the water boarding, however if in Congressional hearings it is found that it helped on the war with terrorist, then some latitude should be given. What I am saying is that the individuals in the CIA and the Armed Forces that had express written orders should be left alone. To prosecute these people is wrong, go after Bush if you want, his executive privileges will protect him. Reply

-11

IN RESPONSE:

odowd80
Aug 30, 09 10:30 AM CDT

@Silence: Excellent, so if you don't give Clinton credit for "robust good times" you can't turn around and blame Obama for the recession, right? You need to convey this to your buddies on the right.

IN RESPONSE:

Mad
Aug 30, 09 11:29 AM CDT

Fool. The bill you are referring to is the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993. Look it up. Note that EVERY SINGLE REPUBLICAN in congress voted against it. Gore was the deciding vote in the Senate. No republican can take credit for that bill

IN RESPONSE:

Doctor_Zaius
Aug 30, 09 12:34 PM CDT

The lie that it was the Republican congress that balanced the budget is almost laughable. What balance the budget was the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 which among other things lowered taxes for people on the bottom of the pay pyramid and increased taxes on those at the top. And when all was said and done not one Republican in the house or senate voted for it. There reason? It would ruin the economy. When it went on to create the greatest economic boom of the modern era the fact that they voted against it didn't prevent them from trying to steal credit for it. Open a history book once in a while, you might not come across as such a dunderhead.

IN RESPONSE:

Doctor_Zaius
Aug 30, 09 12:35 PM CDT

You beat me to it Mad, I tip my hat to you.

IN RESPONSE:

SilenceDogood
Aug 30, 09 5:37 PM CDT

Odowd80, I actually I don’t blame the recession or the boom years on either party. The free enterprise system we have is exactly that, the fiscal and monetary policies put into place by individual Presidents take years to be felt. I do however have major concerns with the amount of money we are currently printing, I see inflation as a direct result of diluting our money supply so rapidly.

IN RESPONSE:

SilenceDogood
Aug 30, 09 5:59 PM CDT

Well Dr. Zaius, the facts are that the economy was booming and a deficit reduction was an easy task to accomplish. However you raise is an interesting point my simian friend. In the 1990’s the democrats where espousing balanced budgets, what has happened to this theory when Zero is now increasing our deficits to historical levels with no ceiling in sight. Please see attached graph at http://zfacts.com/p/318.html. The fact is also that the worst thing your precious Bill Clinton did in his term was repeal the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 which ultimately caused much of the pain we are now experiencing. So dunderhead, read all of the history, not just what appeals to you.

-1

| 0 minutes ago

Caps
Aug 30, 09 8:39 AM CDT

SilenceDogood, if you are so dumb as to say Clinton was impeached, you shouldn't even post a comment. Cheney is running scared, which he should be. He has no morals he should be punished for all the wrongs he made in the past 8 years. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

SilenceDogood
Aug 30, 09 8:40 AM CDT

I seriously doubt that Cheney is afraid of anything.

-8

IN RESPONSE:

RogerMohajir
Aug 30, 09 10:15 AM CDT

Let's try this again: Clinton WAS impeached; he WAS NOT convicted. I feel silly interjecting facts into this "debate" but there you go.

| 0 minutes ago

Lula
Aug 30, 09 9:04 AM CDT

SilenceDogood, No Cheney isn't afraid of anything, because he ia a devil. This guy has no morals, just like most Republicans. He should be punished to the full extent. He is a evil and cruel person. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

SilenceDogood
Aug 30, 09 9:28 AM CDT

This comment has been removed by Newser’s community. You must be logged in to view this comment.

-7

IN RESPONSE:

dontlikenobody
Aug 30, 09 10:53 AM CDT

Brilliant reply straight from the playground, silence. I agree, Lula. But please notice, Silence We haven't - yet - prayed for his death, just for his conviction.

| 0 minutes ago

Observer
Aug 30, 09 9:27 AM CDT

Cheney should be in jail. He is not just a jerk-off he is a criminal. He authorized torture. I support the military and the CIA. I do not supprt draft evading, millionaire pricks ruining this country on so many levels that it will take years for historians to uncover the dozens of illegal schemes cooked up by Bush, Cheney, Rove, Wolfowitz, Gonzales, DeLay, Feith, Perle, Ashcroft and the other co-conspirators. The Bush Administration is clearly the most dangerous in American History. They undermined the Constitution. They authorized the military to become killers and torturers completely out of proportion to the threat. They spied on the US public illegally then forced Congress to whitewash the phone companies law breaking. They broke so many laws that even people trying to keep track are unable to. It is a miracle that Bush didn't attack Iran with the pressure that the Neo-cons and the Israelis were generating. I thank the admirals and generals for that wisdom and restraint. I do not want to see another family's son being mutilated in Afghanistan, Iraq or Iran. And let's not even get into the total criminality of Blackwater and the secret wars and assassinations they lead. Prosecute the war criminals Obama. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

dontlikenobody
Aug 30, 09 10:51 AM CDT

Fifty thumbs up.

IN RESPONSE:

hwoodude
Aug 31, 09 7:42 PM CDT

Well said, Observer...Americans must not sluff off Cheney's madness...he has many corporate and very, very wealthy supporters who know Obama will limit their power. The talk show knucle draggers will continue to obfuscate the truths of Bush and Cheney's illegal, murderous "reign." Americans MUSt demand the truth to be uncovered and punished to insure that the last 8 years of Bush/Cheney madness will never, ever be allowed to happen again in America!

| 0 minutes ago

schmidtkoff
Aug 30, 09 10:33 AM CDT

general petraeus has said that the us violated the geneva conventions regarding treatment of those detained in guantanamo and elsewere. if so those responsible should be held accountable. for to not do so would give license for other countries to do the same to our soldiers or citizens held captive. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Bambi
Aug 31, 09 6:47 AM CDT

Thank you, Schmidtkoff. Finally, someone touches on WHY we must obey Geneva conventions and thus why we must prosecute our war criminals, including Cheney.

| 0 minutes ago

Rocket448
Aug 30, 09 12:45 PM CDT

My 2 cents: I predicted Cheney's reaction (Rush ref ftl) and I suppose any American with half a brain did too. @Silence: question - how can you even move (let alone type) with the Right's boot on your neck? Real wrongs were committed and Cheney was their author (read any book on the Bush administration assuming you can contort yourself enough to hold a book). Its time for wrongs to be righted, and the wrong-doers punished. And if doing so lights the fuze of the reactionary right, well lets weed them out too. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

Maxcat
Aug 30, 09 1:01 PM CDT

It's funny, recently every person who's been arrested or suspected of terrorism offences crys torture. It seems to me that they've been trained to do that because they can't be touched after they've said that and it inflames more emotions round the Muslim world so it's good PR. Having said that I reckon it should be investigated, if only because if it didn't happen the people involved should be exonorated rather than spending the rest of their lives under a cloud. Reply

-3

IN RESPONSE:

dontlikenobody
Aug 30, 09 4:00 PM CDT

Max - I think that, in this case, torture has taken place. The ICRC says so, the UN says so, the ACLU says so, Army investigators say so - even the CIA, on a good day, says so.

| 0 minutes ago

DarkFrancis
Aug 30, 09 4:45 PM CDT

He's only in the public eye so he can put the finishing touches on his book. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

firethorn
Aug 30, 09 7:39 PM CDT

Cheney has created a version of reality in his mind and truth or facts have no effect on it. He reminds me of the fellow in the joke who went around snapping his fingers. Someone asked him why he did it and he replied that it was keeping the elephants away. His questioner pointed out that there were no elephants around. 'See" said the finger snapper,"it's working.' Reply

| 0 minutes ago

Antiks
Aug 30, 09 8:54 PM CDT

Yeah, the law only applies to little people, and not the really dangerous people who have access to more firepower than we can even imagine. The political royalty is exempt. Nothing to see here, move along. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

vwright1
Aug 31, 09 10:30 AM CDT

Poor little Dickie.... Reply

| 0 minutes ago

View all 44 comments »

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