Think Progress

See No Evil

In 2002, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) videotaped its officials administering harsh interrogation tactics on two al Qaeda operatives, but three years later, destroyed at least two videotapes documenting the incidents. The New York Times reports that one of the interrogations captured on tape was that of Abu Zubaydah, a high-level al Qaeda militant who was subjected to waterboarding. The Times adds that the videos "were destroyed in part because officers were concerned that tapes documenting controversial interrogation methods could expose agency officials to greater risk of legal jeopardy." The destruction of the tapes occurred in the wake of the Abu Ghraib scandal and "CIA officers became concerned about a possible leak of the videos and photos." At the time, the CIA was led by Porter Goss. Current Director Michael Hayden defended the agency's actions, arguing that keeping them "posed a security risk." The revelation marks another legal and moral low for an administration that has rendered terrorism suspects to other countries to be tortured, argued for indefinite detention, signed off on secret torture memos, and committed potentially "grave breaches" of the Geneva Conventions.

DESTRUCTION OF EVIDENCE: "What matters here is that it was done in line with the law," Hayden said of the agency's tampering with evidence. Legal experts aren't buying that argument. Jennifer Daskal, senior counsel with Human Rights Watch, said destroying the tapes was illegal. "Basically this is destruction of evidence," she said. Daniel Marcus, a law professor at American University who served as general counsel for the 9/11 Commission, said if tapes were destroyed, "it's a big deal, it's a very big deal" because it could amount to obstruction of justice to withhold evidence being sought in criminal or fact-finding investigations. "The recordings were not provided to a federal court hearing the case of the terror suspect Zacarias Moussaoui," which had made formal requests to the CIA for such documentary evidence. The U.S. District Judge in the case, Leonie Brinkema, said she can no longer trust the CIA and other government agencies on how they represent classified evidence in terror cases. The tapes also were not provided to the 9/11 Commission, whose members "demanded a wide array of material and relied heavily on classified interrogation transcripts in piecing together its narrative of events." The ACLU "said the tapes were destroyed at a time when a federal court had ordered the CIA to comply with a Freedom of Information Act request."

CONGRESS' ROLE: In his agency's defense, Hayden said, "The leaders of our oversight committees in Congress were informed of the videos years ago and of the Agency's intention to dispose of the material. Our oversight committees also have been told that the videos were, in fact, destroyed." Hayden's statement didn't suggest that the congressional leaders approved of the destruction, however. Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA), who was ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee at the time, said, "I told the CIA that destroying videotapes of interrogations was a bad idea and urged them in writing not to do it." Then-ranking member of Senate Intelligence Committee John Rockefeller (D-WV) said, "While we were provided with very limited information about the existence of the tapes, we were not consulted on their usage nor the decision to destroy the tapes." Rockefeller does not deny, however, that he was informed of the agency's intent to dispose of the tapes, and he acknowledged that he learned of the destruction one year ago, in Nov. 2006. An official with the House Intelligence Committee told the Times, "This is a matter that should have been briefed to the full Intelligence Committee at the time. This does not appear to have been done."

CONGRESS TAKES KEY STEP TO END TORTURE: The startling disclosures of the CIA's destruction of videotapes "came on the same day that House and Senate negotiators reached an agreement on legislation that would prohibit the use of waterboarding and other harsh interrogation tactics by the CIA and bring intelligence agencies in line with rules followed by the U.S. military." The measure, which needs approval from the full House and Senate, would require all American interrogators to abide by Army Field Manual. In doing so, the new law would "effectively set a government-wide standard for legal interrogations by explicitly outlawing the use of simulated drowning, forced nudity, hooding, military dogs and other harsh tactics against prisoners by any U.S. intelligence agency." White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said such a provision "is something the president has opposed in the past and that we would have a veto threat on."

In a 235-181 vote, the House approved the Energy Independence and Security Act yesterday, defying a veto threat from the White House.

NEW YORK: New York's attorney general "has been handing out subpoenas to Wall Street in an effort to find out how banks bought subprime home loans and packaged them into complex securities."

CALIFORNIA: "A proposed initiative that drew national attention for its potential to affect next year's presidential election will not appear on the June ballot."

VIRGINIA: Sen. John Warner (R-VA) closes out three decades in the Senate "with a potentially historic" law on greenhouse gases.

THINK PROGRESS: Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee bumbles three times in one sentence, compounds his cluelessness on the Iran National Intelligence Estimate.

ESCHATON: CNN "postpones" documentary on "Iran Goes Nuclear."

BUZZ FLASH: Israeli newspaper claims Israeli defense officials knew of National Intelligence Estimate findings a month before President Bush says he knew.

WASHINGTON NOTE: Where's the congressional outrage over former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton's smearing of the entire intelligence community?

"The Bush reaction to [the National Intelligence Estimate] -- he didn't try to block it. He didn't try to postpone it. ... He didn't try to spin it to our advantage. This is an amazing moment of candor by the United States."
-- Time columnist Joe Klein, 12/7/07

VERSUS

"I thought that Bush's reaction to it was, literally, incredible. As in, not to be believed...[an] utter failure to respond intelligently to the report."
-- Klein, 12/7/07

The research team that brings you The Progress Report and ThinkProgress.org needs spring interns! Click here for more information.