Zaid Jilani January 22 2017
CIA DIRECTOR
NOMINEE Mike Pompeo — whose confirmation vote in the Senate is set for
Monday — has said he is open to
changing the rules governing the interrogation of detainees, which could mean
re-authorizing the use of the torture technique called waterboarding.
The vote is shaping up as a test for Senate Democrats, who will have
to choose between letting Donald Trump fill a key national-security post, on
the one hand, and support for basic human rights on the other.
Pompeo’s admission came in a written response to
inquiries from the Senate Intelligence Committee. Asked if he would refrain
from taking steps that would reintroduce waterboarding or other similar
techniques, he replied that he would “consult with experts at the Agency and at
other organizations in the U.S. government” on whether the Army Field Manual — which currently
establishes the legal limits of interrogation — should be changed. In
other words, he’ll follow the law, but he’s open to changing it:
Pompeo’s confirmation was originally going to be voted on Friday,
but a small group of Democratic senators led by Oregon’s Ron Wyden objected.
“No CIA Director in history has ever been confirmed on Inauguration Day.
The importance of the position of CIA Director, especially in these dangerous
times, demands that the nomination be thoroughly vetted, questioned and
debated,” they said in a statement.
One senator has already pledged to oppose Pompeo’s confirmation. “At
a time of massive attacks on privacy, I will strongly oppose Congressman Pompeo
as CIA director,” Bernie Sanders announced on
Friday.
Pompeo at his confirmation hearing in
Washington, D.C. on January 12
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