2/05/10

Yesterday conservatives amped up their attacks on the American criminal justice system and military.  On Fox News, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell insulted the FBI's competencies, saying that Larry King gives a tougher interview than the FBI does when interrogating a terrorism suspect.   He follows a broader pattern of distorting the facts and disparaging our security institutions - and the men and women who risk their lives to keep us safe - for political gain. 

Conservatives spout mistruths, insult law enforcement professionals as a means to politically attack Obama administration. Conservative leaders in congress and pundits have been trying to score cheap political points by attacking America's civil servants and those on the front line combating extremists.  Just yesterday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, referred to the FBI interrogation of Umar Farouq Abdulmutallab, the underwear bomber, saying that, "He was given a 50 minute interrogation, probably Larry King has interrogated people longer and better than that."  Similarly, Susan Collins mocked the FBI interrogation saying, "Less than one hour. That's right, less than one hour. In fact, just fifty minutes. That's the amount of time that the FBI spent questioning Abdulmutallab, the foreign terrorist who tried to blow up a plane on Christmas Day. Then, he was given a Miranda warning and a lawyer, and, not surprisingly, he stopped talking."  And Michael Hayden, the Bush administration's final CIA Director, wrote in the Washington Post that, "We allowed an enemy combatant the protections of our Constitution before we had adequately interrogated him," And David Frum fallaciously declares in a CNN.com op-ed on Monday that, "As soon as the underwear bomber got his Miranda warning, he stopped talking." [Mitch McConnell, 2/4/10.  Susan Collins, 1/30/10. Michael Hayden, 1/31/10]

These remarks are disrespectful and just plain wrong.  Earlier this week FBI Director Robert Mueller confirmed that federal agents have been successful in obtaining intelligence from Abdulmutallab: "It is a continuum in which over a period of time, we have been successful in obtaining intelligence, not just on day 1, but on day 2, day 3 day 4 and day 5 down the road." And the Washington Post reports that, "Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the man accused of trying to blow up a jet airplane on Christmas Day, has been providing FBI interrogators with useful intelligence about his training and contacts since last week, Obama administration sources said Tuesday. Separately, FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III told senators at an intelligence committee hearing that Abdulmutallab was giving information to investigators."  In addition, the Los Angeles Times reported, the FBI decided to mirandize Adulmutallab after he had stopped providing useful intelligence.

In fact, the interrogation of Abdulmutallab has already proven fruitful.  Ken Gude of the Center for American Progress writes that, "The intelligence gained from Abdulmutallab has been shared widely throughout the intelligence community - and has already produced results. On January 21, Malaysian counterterrorism authorities arrested 10 suspected terrorists tied to Abdulmutallab. The suspected cell was made up of mostly non-Malaysians including two Nigerians who were thought to be part of an international terrorist network."  [LA Times, 2/01/10. ABC News, 2/02/10. David Frum, CNN, 2/1/10. Robert Mueller, via Adam Serwer, 2/03/10. Ken Gude, Think Progress, 5/3/10]

Richard Clarke: FBI is "good at getting people to talk."  What makes the statements from Sen. McConnell, and his conservative cohorts, even more egregious is that the FBI is in fact very good at interrogating terrorists.  Richard Clarke, the counterterrorism advisor to Presidents Clinton and Bush, and a career intelligence official, said earlier this week that, "The FBI is good at getting people to talk...they have been much more  successful than the previous attempts of torturing people and trying to convince them to give information that way. The FBI does it right." Similarly, Vicki Divoll, a former legal adviser to the CIA's Counterterrorist Center and general counsel for the Senate intelligence committee told the Washington Independent that, "The FBI is experienced at using nonviolent but aggressive techniques, within the rule of law, to elicit information from individuals who are hostile and uncooperative."

In fact some of the most important intelligence gained on al Qaeda has been gained through FBI interrogations. Ali Soufan, was an FBI interrogator who, through traditional interrogation techniques of Abu Zubaydah discovered that Khalid Sheikh Mohammad was the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks.  This was some of the most important intelligence gathered on al Qaeda, and it was obtained by an FBI agent.   In fact, once he and his FBI team were removed from the interrogation by contractors and intelligence officials, Zubaydah stopped talking.  They were then asked to return.  Shortly after they returned they received more actionable intelligence. 

In the case of Umar Farouq Abdulmutallab, the Underwear Bomber, cooperation and intelligence was gained not in spite of using the FBI and following the rule of law, but because of it.  As a senior national security official told ABC News, "One of the principal reasons why his family came back is because they had complete trust in the US system of justice and believed that Umar Farouq would be treated fairly and appropriately... And that they would be as well." [Richard Clarke, ABC, 2/3/10. Vicki Divoll, via Washington Independent, 6/24/09.  Ali Soufan, 5/13/09. ABC News, 2/02/10]

Disparaging the FBI is part of a larger pattern of conservatives attacking national security apparatus for political gain. Conservatives have long demonstrated their willingness to trade our national security for political gain. 

Obstructing national security policy by blocking votes on key nominees. Senator Richard Shelby (R-IA) has put a hold the nominees for the top Intelligence officers at the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security as well as a senior civilian at the Pentagon. ABC News reported yesterday: "Sen. Carl Levin, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, gave a frustrated speech on the Senate floor. ‘They've been sitting on our calendar since December 2, over two months, while these positions go unfilled and we're in the middle of two wars,' said Levin of five total defense department nominees Shelby has held up (civilian positions only, points out Shelby's office). It all has to do with Alabama-based defense contracts. In other words - pork." [ABC News, 2/4/10]

Ignoring facts and seeking political points. After blatantly lying about the facts surrounding the investigation of the Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, Senator Kit Bond further attacked the White House. The NY Times reports, "Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary, said yesterday that Senator Kit Bond, the ranking Republican on the Intelligence Committee, should apologize for suggesting that the administration leaked information in the investigation of the Nigerian man accused of trying to blow up a jetliner on Christmas Day...Mr. Gibbs said the senator's assertion was incorrect. Mr. Abdulmutallab's cooperation with the authorities, he said, was first disclosed at a Congressional hearing on Tuesday by the director of national intelligence, Adm. Dennis Blair, and the director of the F.B.I., Robert Mueller." [NY Times, 2/4/10]

Jeopardizing defense spending. In 2009, "Senate Republicans failed...in their bid to filibuster a massive Pentagon bill that funds the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, an unusual move designed to delay President Obama's health-care legislation," reported the Washington Post.  While unsuccessful, the move would have had major consequences for national security priorities at a time when American troops are at risk in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Conservatives had previously obstructed the entire 2010 defense appropriations bill, because of an amendment "that would specify harsh penalties for hate crimes, including those based on sexual orientation or gender identity," reported the Hill.  As a result, 34 Senate Republicans sought to block a vote on the defense bill, prioritizing their opposition to the Hate Crimes amendment over support for the appropriation of critical funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. [Washington Post, 12/18/09.The Hill, 10/22/09. Senate Roll Call Vote, 10/22/09]

Rushing to send troops into harm's way into Afghanistan without a clear strategy.  Throughout the fall of 2009, conservatives consistently called for the President to abandon his methodical review of the U.S. strategy for Afghanistan and come to a snap decision to put more troops into harm's way.  But, as senior military strategists, including CENTCOM commander General David Petraeus and NATO-ISAF commander General Stanley McChrystal have both testified, the President's painstaking review was critical for setting the strategy.  [Sens. Graham, Lieberman, and McCain, via WSJ, 9/13/09. Gen. David Petraeus, 12/09/09. General Stanley McChrystal, 12/01/09]

Placing a hold on a major veterans bill.  This fall, Sen. Tom Coburn (R - OK) placed a hold on a bill that provided "Enhancements in VA health care for female veterans, including new training for VA mental health providers to handle veterans who experienced military sexual trauma. ... Support to family caregivers of severely disabled veterans by giving them access to counseling, support and a living stipend... Expanded mental health services to rural regions where veterans currently have to drive hundreds of miles to seek mental health care... Improved traumatic brain injury (TBI) care...  [and] Additional programs for homeless veterans," according to Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, a non-partisan veterans' advocacy organization. [IAVA, 10/30/09]

Denying threat of climate change outlined by Pentagon.  Conservatives in Congress have built up a record of climate change denial.  Senator Jim Inhofe (R - OK) and Rep. Paul Broun (R- GA) have both called global warming a hoax, and Rep. Mike Pence (R - IN) said that the "science is very mixed on the subject of global warming." Yet the Pentagon's Quadrennial Defense Review - the document setting defense strategy for the United States - devotes over four pages to addressing the issue. [Senator Jim Inhofe, via Countrywide and the Sun, 6/26/09. Rep. Paul Broun, via Think Progress, 6/26/09. Rep. Mike Pence, via Think Progress, 5/05/09. 2010 QDR, 2/1/10]

Politicizing intelligence on Iran in order to justify military action. There are emerging signs that neoconservatives are once again attempting to recklessly politicize the intelligence community's activities in order to pave the way for their militant policies. Last month, Josh Marshall noted Center for Security Policy President Frank Gaffney's "argument that Obama needs to appoint a 'Team B' to come in and analyze the threat of Islamic fundamentalism," to ensure that the U.S. intelligence community is taking the threat seriously enough.  Such efforts to politicize intelligence are especially troubling, given the reports that the intelligence community is updating its analysis of Iran's nuclear program.  [TPM, 1/12/10.Frank Gaffney, via the National Review, 12/4/07.  Danielle Pletka, via the Washington Post, 12/07/07]

Undermining and obstructing America's policy toward Latin America. Sen. Jim DeMint (R - SC) traveled to Honduras in support of the coup against Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, actively undermining sensitive efforts by the Administration to restore democratic rule.  In addition to this trip, also blocked the, "nominations of Thomas Shannon, President Barack Obama's pick to serve as ambassador to Brazil, and Arturo Valenzuela, the choice for the post of assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs," according to the Hill.  Steve Clemons of the New America Foundation explains how historically, this borders on treason. [The Hill, 9/20/09. The Washington Note, 10/1/09]

What We're Reading

A series of errors set the stage for a Taliban attack on a Combat Outpost Keating in Eastern Afghanistan four months ago, which left eight U.S. soldiers dead, according to a military report. More military commanders are being held accountable for their battlefield losses. The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley A. McChrystal said that conditions are no longer deteriorating and predicted further improvements this year.

China threw a roadblock in the path of a U.S.-led push for sanctions against Iran, saying that it is important to continue negotiations as long as Iran appears willing to consider a deal to give up some of its enriched uranium.

The latest suicide attacker in Iraq detonated a car bomb alongside a crowd of Shiite pilgrims in a holy city south of Baghdad, killing at least 27 people and wounding 60.

Two bomb blasts targeting a bus filled with Shiite Muslims and later a hospital in Karachi killed at least 15 people Friday in the latest outbreak of violence in Pakistan.

Romania's president, Traian Basescu, said in a statement his country, a former Warsaw Pact member and now part of NATO, was prepared to negotiate with the United States to accept ground-based interceptors as part of an antiballistic missile defense system.

Amid accounts of starvation, food shortages in the army and runaway inflation, senior economic officials in North Korea have been fired, according to reports in South Korean. North Korea will also release an American missionary who it arrested after he entered the authoritarian country on Christmas day, aiming to publicize human-rights abuses there.

A Ukrainian company is being used by political campaigns to rent crowds of supporters for various rallies, further adding to nation's disillusionment with the Orange Revolution.

The prime ministers of Britain and Ireland unveiled a breakthrough agreement that saves Northern Ireland's Catholic-Protestant unity government.

Nearly two months after the seizure in Thailand of a charter plane carrying 35 tons of weapons shipped from North Korea, a Thai investigation has yet to over clues to the mystery of to where the rockets and other armaments were headed.

Former Liberian president Charles Taylor, testifying in his war crimes trial in The Hague, said that his government had awarded American televangelist Pat Robertson a gold mining concession in 1999 and that Robertson later offered to lobby the Bush administration on the government's behalf.

Residents of South Ossetia petitioned Senator Richard Lugar to warn against supplying the Georgian government with weapons, saying they could be used against civilians

Commentary of the Day

Retired Major General Paul Eaton explains how the Republican Party continues to be caustic towards the military.  

Henri J. Barkey and Thomas de Waal want additional American and international support to help propel the reconciliation efforts between Turkey and Armenia, which begun to stall.

The New York Times hopes Iraq can begin allowing Sunni candidates to run for Parliament rather than stall in implementing Iraqi appeals court decision to reverse the ban on hundreds of political candidates.

Benjamin Wittes and Robert Chesney discuss how federal judges are making detainee policy unless there is a more forceful movement on legislation by the Administration and Congress.