http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/terrorism/bush-officials-contradict-house-republicans-on-secret-cia-program/Bush Officials Contradict House Republicans On Secret CIA Program
Unless I’m misreading this, it appears that Bush administration officials are now contradicting House GOPers about that secret CIA program we talked about yesterday.
As you know, House Dems on the Intelligence committee have charged that CIA director Leon Panetta privately testified that the agency had been concealing “significant actions” from Congress since 2001.
The House GOP line on this, from ranking Intel committee member Pete Hoekstra, has been that Panetta disclosed programs that the CIA never actually launched. “This was planning, nothing was ever implemented,” Hoekstra said.
But here’s how former Bush officials characterized the program in today’s WaPo:
Current and former administration officials familiar with the program said it was not directly related to previously disclosed high-priority programs such as detainee interrogations or the warrantless surveillance of suspected terrorists on U.S. soil. It was a intelligence-collection activity run by the CIA’s Counterterrorism Center, officials said. It was not a covert action, which by law would have required a presidential finding and a report to Congress.
“This characterization of something that began in 2001 and continued uninterrupted for eight years is just wrong. Honest men would question that characterization. It was more off and on,” said a former top Bush administration official….
According to former Bush officials, the program was “run” by the CIA’s counterterrorism team and continued in an “off and on” fashion — with emphasis on the “on.”
In other words, Bush officials have now conceded that a program concealed from Congress was implemented. That puts them directly at odds with the House GOP line. Right?
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
