Newspapers Across the Country Disagree with the President's Veto of Bill Extending Prohibition of Harsh Interrogation Techniques to CIA
On Saturday, President Bush vetoed the House- and Senate-passed Intelligence Authorization bill because it extended the prohibition on the use of waterboarding and other harsh coercive interrogation techniques that currently applies to the military to the entire Intelligence Community, including the CIA.
Below are selections from editorials opposing the President's veto from across the country:
Tampa Tribune Editorial (Florida)
"Override Veto of Torture Ban," March 11, 2008
"Against the advice of former military leaders, President Bush continues to insist that harsh methods of interrogation have secured valuable information for the country in the war against terrorism."So over the weekend, the president vetoed legislation that would have banned "waterboarding" and other secret methods because he says they are valuable tools. Bush is wrong.
"The United States should never condone torture, and Congress should act quickly to override the president's veto..."
New York Times Editorial
"Radio Fear America," March 11, 2008
"...Mr. Bush announced that he had vetoed the 2008 intelligence budget because it contains a clause barring the C.I.A. from torturing prisoners. Mr. Bush told the nation that it "would take away one of the most valuable tools in the war on terror -- the C.I.A. program to detain and question key terrorist leaders and operatives." That is simply not true. Nothing in the bill shuts down the C.I.A. interrogation program. It just requires the C.I.A.'s interrogators to follow the rules already contained in the Army field manual on prisoners."The manual does not stop interrogators from questioning prisoners aggressively. It simply forbids the use of techniques that are regarded by most civilized people as abuse and torture, including sexual abuse, electric shocks, mock executions and the infamous form of simulated drowning known as waterboarding..."
Los Angeles Times Editorial
"Bush's tortured veto," March 11, 2008
"'We do not torture,' President Bush insists, yet that assurance is accompanied by an unspoken 'but.' In vetoing legislation that would require CIA interrogators to abide by the same humanitarian standards imposed on their counterparts in the U.S. military, Bush again has drowned out his denials with an ominous silence about just what 'enhanced' interrogation tactics he considers appropriate..."...By reserving the right to use unspecified enhanced interrogation methods, the United States -- especially the United States under this president -- abandons the moral high ground. That is why, on balance, it serves America's interests for there to be a single standard for interrogation techniques.
"The Army Field Manual provides such a single standard. And, yes, it tells America's enemies in specific terms what this country will not do. Are those the techniques Bush wants to preserve as options for the CIA? If so, terrorists already know from the Field Manual what they involve and, according to the president, can undergo training to resist them. If the president has other, even harsher, tactics in mind, then the assurance that 'we don't torture' rings even hollower. Congress should end his word games by voting to override his veto."
Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial
"Waterboarding Veto: Shaming America," March 11, 2008
"Bush...vetoed a bill Saturday that would have stopped the CIA from using so-called enhanced interrogation techniques such as waterboarding. That practice has been called simulated drowning, but experts say there's nothing simulated about it; it's just that the torture stops before death occurs."Nonetheless, Bush continues to insist that there is value to inflicting pain on captives...
"Bush completely disregards the assessment of expert interrogators who say a tortured captive is more likely to say anything just to get the pain to stop. Other captives would rather die than speak, especially if they believe death is the means to martyrdom..."
Austin American-Statesman Editorial (Texas)
"Bush veto sends wrong message about torture," March 10, 2008
"President Bush's veto Saturday of a bill to restrict the CIA's interrogation methods was another example of his continuing push to expand executive power at the expense of his country's reputation..."This veto is another blow in America's falling stature as a moral leader in the world. For most Americans, it is unconscionable for their nation to be seen as condoning torture...
"That's too bad, because the bill is a good one that would return to the United States a bit of moral authority it has lost during the Bush presidency. The shorthand is wrong - the veto doesn't mean Bush endorses terror. But the president missed a chance to make a powerfully symbolic statement against torture by signing the bill."
Orlando Sentinel Editorial (Florida)
"Congress should override Bush's move allowing torture in CIA interrogations," March 11, 2008
"...Torture degrades one of America's most powerful assets in the war on terrorists -- its moral authority. 'Adherence to our values distinguishes us from our enemy,' Mr. Petraeus wrote."A 2005 law banning torture isn't enough. The Bush administration has reserved the right, for example, to resume waterboarding.
"Congress needs to rule out torture if the president won't, and override his misguided veto."
Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette Editorial (Indiana)
"Disgusting support for torture," March 11, 2008
"The president's veto further damages U.S. credibility and sends the dangerous, disgusting message that the U.S. condones torture."
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Editorial (Washington)
"Torture Bill: Override this veto," March 10, 2008
"Any bill banning the use of controversial torture techniques by the CIA seems like the sort of common, values-based bill most of us could get behind. Harsh, inhumane treatment of terror suspects (who knows to what extent those being waterboarded are actually culpable?) is a dark and foolish road to travel..."When it comes to violating human rights, the ends simply can't justify the means...
"Congress must overturn this odious veto."
Waco Tribune Editorial (Texas)
"Let's get out of the torture business," March 11, 2008
"...Last week President Bush vetoed the bill and challenged Congress to override. Bush says the United States doesn't torture, but clearly he wants room within U.S. laws to do exactly that..."Not only is torture inhumane, it is counterproductive. Often it results in false leads. Often those tortured don't have the information sought...
"For the president to say that this nation doesn't torture and then to veto a bill that forbids torture sends a message loud and clear that we don't want to project to other nations:
"Despite what we say about human rights in other lands, we will do what we deem expedient in ours."
Barre Montpelier Times Argus Editorial (Vermont)
"Torture and values," March 11, 2008
"If asked, how would we as Americans define our country's values? While we seem drawn, emotionally, to the patriotic sounds so frequently heard on the Fourth of July, are those red-white-and-blue tones consistent with our president's announced veto of legislation that would ban the use of torture by the CIA?..."The United States is either a civilized nation or it's not. We can't have it both ways."
Pocono Record Editorial (Pennsylvania)
"At what price, our freedom?" March 11, 2008
"What separates the United States from terrorists ought to be this country's long-standing reverence for personal freedom, a consistent championing of the rule of law and a respect for human rights and dignity."But President Bush jeopardizes this nation's security, its reputation and the lives of its citizens when he declares that U.S. officials need the option of torture in order to battle terrorists...
"Congress had passed a sensible bill that would have ended the long-standing debate over torture...
"The president's insistence that the United States needs to use these reprehensible techniques degrades the United States' ability to present itself to the world as a beacon of liberty, stability and the rule of law for all people..."
Watertown Daily Times Editorial (New York)
"Reject torture," March 9, 2008
"The United States should lead the way in the area of human rights. That means humane treatment of prisoners and avoiding the use of torture in interrogations of suspected terrorists."Congress is right to oppose the use of waterboarding and other coercive interrogation techniques to obtain information from alleged terrorists...
"Congress may not have the votes to override President Bush's veto. But the members are correct in taking a principled stand for human rights."