The United States Justice Department has made it clear to the United States Congress about the CIA’s use of torture techniques. According to the Justice Department, it is “legal” for US intelligence operatives and agents to use methods of interrogation. In addition, the Justice Department says that organizations such as the CIA are allowed to even use methods that are against the Geneva Convention and other forms of international law.
The debate on the use of torture made the headlines when there were talks of waterboarding, which is a simulated torture. The George W. Bush administration had vetoed a bill that would make waterboarding illegal.
I had previous written on how the House Democrats had tried to override Bush’s veto on waterboarding, but failed on March 11, 2008. If the bill was passed, it would be illegal for such intelligence agencies like the CIA to engage in the use of waterboarding. It was one of the methods of interrogation by the United States Army field manual.
If was confirmed that waterboarding was used between 2002 and 2003. The House Democrats were fifty-one votes short of being able to override Bush’s veto. Bush explained that he could not sign a bill that would keep him and future US presidents from conducting a lawful intelligence program.
This could also hurt the presumed GOP presidential nominee Senator John McCain of Arizona in the future. McCain said that the bill should have been vetoed. However, McCain has been a strong opponent of waterboarding. The eventual Democratic nominee could use that as ammunition against McCain in the general election race.
In the case of the CIA being legally allowed to bend the rules in regards to torture, the Justice Department’s explanation shows that Bush’s administration argues that boundaries such as the laws should be given some flexibility. In short, the Bush administration has not given some strong definitions on what methods would violate international law.
The legality of interrogation methods could make its way to be a possible debate topic in the general elections between John McCain and Senator Barack Obama of Illinois or Senator Hillary Clinton of New York, whichever wins the Democratic Party’s nomination.
In a sense, this could be tied into McCain’s main platforms of Iraq and National Security. At the same time, this could provide ammunition against McCain in the future.
Inevitably, it could be up to the next US President to give the strong definitions on methods that are illegal.
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