Keith Olbermann - Daniel Levin - Waterboarding discussion 1

Bush Administration Blocked Waterboarding Critic
Former DOJ Official Tested the Method Himself, in Effort to Form Torture Policy

By JAN CRAWFORD GREENBURG and ARIANE de VOGUE
ABC news
Nov. 2, 2007—
A senior Justice Department official, charged with reworking the administration's legal position on torture in 2004 became so concerned about the controversial interrogation technique of waterboarding that he decided to experience it firsthand, sources told ABC News.

Daniel Levin, then acting assistant attorney general, went to a military base near Washington and underwent the procedure to inform his analysis of different interrogation techniques.

After the experience, Levin told White House officials that even though he knew he wouldn't die, he found the experience terrifying and thought that it clearly simulated drowning.

Levin, who refused to comment for this story, concluded waterboarding could be illegal torture unless performed in a highly limited way and with close supervision. And, sources told ABC News, he believed the Bush Administration had failed to offer clear guidelines for its use.


Bush Administration Blocked Critic

The administration at the time was reeling from an August 2002 memo by Jay Bybee, then the head of the Office of Legal Counsel, which laid out possible justifications for torture. In June 2004, Levin's predecessor at the office, Jack Goldsmith, officially withdrew the Bybee memo, finding it deeply flawed.

When Levin took over from Goldsmith, he went to work on a memo that would effectively replace the Bybee memo as the administration's legal position on torture. It was during this time that he underwent waterboarding.

In December 2004, Levin released the new memo. He said, "Torture is abhorrent" but he went on to say in a footnote that the memo was not declaring the administration's previous opinions illegal. The White House, with Alberto Gonzales as the White House counsel, insisted that this footnote be included in the memo.

But Levin never finished a second memo imposing tighter controls on the specific interrogation techniques. Sources said he was forced out of the Justice Department when Gonzales became attorney general.


Critics Decry Waterboarding as Torture
Critics say waterboarding should never be used.

According to retired Rear Adm. John Hutson, "There is no question this is torture -- this is a technique by which an individual is strapped to a board, elevated by his feet and either dunked into water or water poured over his face over a towel or a blanket."

The legal justification of waterboarding has come to the forefront in the debate swirling around Michael B. Mukasey's nomination for attorney general.

While Democrats are pressing him to declare waterboarding illegal, he has refused to do so. He calls it personally "repugnant," but he is unwilling to declare it illegal until he can see the classified information regarding the technique and its current use.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Keith
• Olbermann
• Daniel
• Levin
• waterboarding
• torture

[az101010]

OMG- i just flipped into a liberal state of mind thinking about the statement "there will always be wars and rumors of wars".. OMG- NO NO NO NO.. I CAN'T TAKE IT- IT CAN'T BE.. we must stop this.. we must stop them.. we must stop it.. i will build a giant monkey wrench and stop the spinning of the world if it don't stop.. get that straight jacket away from me- i'm a liberal- i'm not crazy- michael savage is crazy..

[dougzilla]

dear mr/ms az101010.

a/ I am not a liberal.

b/ This is not a game.

c/ Bye bye

[az101010]

liberals have a hard time accepting the darker side of reality.. and if they let that get out of control they start having "ill-will" towards humans- especially leaders..

liberals don't get mean about it like others tend to get with their stuff- and that's why i like liberals- even though they are a huge burden on america..

i have helped a few liberals pull out of it and get their life back- but it's not easy..

[dougzilla]

The question of (waterboarding/torture) has to do with morality, human rights and the law.

If you perceive this purely liberal/conservative issue. Then I feel sorry for you for having such tunnel vision.

[az101010]

dougzilla- do you realize you are hiding or ignoring the fact the more people don't think it's torture and that it is legal..

you are operating in a world of your own..

i don't think you are mentally ill.. i do think your reasoning is impaired because of your hate..

[dougzilla]

hahahaha

you want to water board and I am the one that hates?

[werderdiablo]

i want to remember you:

tokio 1946. some japanese militarys were sent for 15years to prison. reason: they waterboarded american soldiers.

now americans do it. hippocrates!

[werderdiablo]

because az101010 gets personal anyway:

az101010 is gay 10year old male whore in bangkok offering his body to 70year old conservatives.

just want to mention it

[az101010]

dougzilla- just for the fun of it could you write down exactly what your purpose is with this and what you would like to accomplish?

[az101010]

also interesting is that this waterboarding apparently has not been seen for five years and only three known reports of it in this war without information on whether anyone almost drowned or what anyones intentions were..

i also don't see how making an issue of this is hurting anything.. but i doubt it will make future wars friendlier..

[az101010]

dougzilla- they have always made the enemy fear for their life in a war when needed.. why should i fight this kind of thing like so many liberals do and mess up my life over it?

sure i could go into the streets and shout "no more wars no more wars"- but i would be making a fool of myself and i might get a rubber bullet in my ass..

it's interesting how this waterboarding issue has nothing to do with anyone other than liberals who are just chasing themselves around in circles about it..