April 26, 2009 11:15 AM

McCain: Don't Investigate Torture Memos

By
Brian Montopoli
Topics
In The News
(CBS)
Arizona Sen. John McCain suggested today that the push to investigate and possibly prosecute Bush administration officials who crafted the legal basis for the use of "enhanced interrogation techniques," such as waterboarding, may have grown from a desire to "settle old political scores."

Appearing on CBS' Face The Nation Sunday, the former Republican presidential nominee — who was himself tortured as a prisoner of the North Vietnamese — said, "Are you going to prosecute people for giving bad legal advice?" He suggested that Washington should ignore calls to investigate who was behind government lawyers writing memos which gave legal cover to the use of torture on detainees.

"We need to put this behind us," he told host Bob Schieffer. "We need to move forward. … We need a united nation, not a divided one."

McCain reiterated that he has always opposed torture, noting that it can be a recruiting tool for America's enemies, as was the case with news of America's mistreatment of detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. But prosecutions would not ultimately benefit the country, he said. He compared the current situation to President Ford's decision to pardon President Nixon following the Watergate scandal.

"Most people in retrospect believe that the Ford pardon was right, because we moved on. We've got to move on," said McCain.

Schieffer pointed out that those on the other side of the debate would say that people will not believe America is serious about not using torture again unless those involved are "held accountable."

McCain responded that "they're going to be held accountable in the court of public opinion."

"It was bad advice," McCain said of the arguments laid out in the memos recently released by the Obama administration, which outlined the harsh interrogation techniques authorized for use by the Bush White House. "But if you criminalize bad advice on the part of lawyers, how are you going to get people to serve, and what sort of precedent does that set for the future?"

Schieffer asked if Jay Bybee, one of the authors of the memos, should be impeached or asked to resign. Bybee is now a federal judge.

"Well, resignation would be a decision he would have to make on his own," McCain said. "But he falls into the same category as everybody else, as far as giving very bad advice and misinterpreting fundamentally what the United States is all about, much less things like the Geneva Conventions. Under President Reagan, we signed an agreement against torture. We were in violation of that."


More from Face The Nation (4.26.09):
  • Leahy: Truth Commission Or Consequences
  • Roundtable Discussion On Obama's First 100 Days With Editor Tina Brown And Reporter Bob Woodward

  • Schieffer: Bo Has Left The Building
  • Read The Complete Transcript> (pdf)

    To watch Senator McCain's appearance on Face The Nation click on the video player below.


    • Add a Comment See all 286 Comments
    by frounds May 22, 2009 12:41 AM EDT
    If holding people accountable shuts Cheney up, then let's hold court.
    Reply to this comment
    by Sporty96 May 4, 2009 1:23 PM EDT
    All republicans are cut from the same mold.. If one checks McCain's actions through out his career they will find that McCain is most likely in the top 10 for corruption..
    McCain has had a free pass from the news media and does will not touch him because he was a prisoner of war..

    If McCain was a democrat ,, he would have been attacked as Kerry was in the president race in 2004.
    Reply to this comment
    by Johnther April 29, 2009 2:36 AM EDT
    And the Re THUG LIE CON party wonders why now less than 20% of Americans identify themselves as part of this criminal cabal. What happened to a "country of laws" and that old Republican ditty, "Do the crime, do the time"?

    When John McCain can get away with parading around as a "maverick" while talking out of both sides of his mouth on torture and actually be taken seriously, we are in a world of hurt. Kiss the late, great U.S. of A. goodbye.

    Bubye, rule of law.
    Bubye, Constitution.
    Bubye, moral high ground (Oops, sorry, we gave that up long ago)

    "Evil is manifest by our inability to conceive of causing it." Hazrat Inayat Khan
    Reply to this comment
    by truthstarved April 28, 2009 9:36 PM EDT
    I, solemnly, swear to engage in Cheney-speak until I can forget that torture is morally reprehensible and constitutionally untenable.

    Torture is bad? no, our leaders have determined that torture is good because it saves lives. State-sponsored torture undermines the legal foundation of our republic? no, it provides our leaders with the necessary flexibility to safeguard our republic. State-sponsored torture puts us all at risk? no, only those who oppose the leadership of the state are at risk. How can we be certain that those we are torturing are actually enemies of the state? That?s simple? they all confess in the end. Torturing our enemies increases the likelihood that our own troops will be tortured? no, the enemy already engages in torture ? that?s what separates them from us; after all, our enemies are pathological by nature.

    Oh, that reminds me? now that the new administration is in power, torture is bad.? But, I thought that torture saves lives? no, torture helps the recruiting efforts of our enemies. But, doesn?t torture provide our leaders with the necessary flexibility to safeguard our republic? No, there is now a majority consensus that the practice of torture is actually inconsistent with the founding principles of our republic. Shouldn?t we have hearings then to insure that torture can never happen again? No, the mere recognition that torture is now wrong should be sufficient to the task of safeguarding the future of our republic. But what about all those persons we tortured? Aren?t they entitled to justice? Our leadership has determined that looking back is divisive; Justice is best served by looking forward without reflection. How about those in the leadership who were responsible for devising and implementing the policy of torture? Shouldn?t they be punished? That question is the perfect example of how divisive hindsight can be! Remember, only our enemies try to divide us in times of war?.and you know what happens to our enemies.
    Reply to this comment
    by Samcrowl April 28, 2009 4:07 PM EDT
    Per McCain: "Those who say our enemies won't abide by the Geneva Convention..Ah, they will if they know there are going to be retributions for their violations". Oh? Like what is going to happen to the USA for OUR violations? This holier than thou crap is what makes other countries hate us. Why is it that the Republican Party thinks all their sins should be overlooked and forgiven, and that people should just get over it each time they violate not only US laws but International ones as well? The lessons of Richard Nixon should have been taken to heart by everyone but it appears not to be so. We are no better than our leaders. NO man is above the law, that includes Bush and his cronies.
    Reply to this comment
    by down-ndirty April 28, 2009 1:51 AM EDT
    Hmm Lets see International Law, gee a lot of the enemy do it every day. You do not even know his position because your not smart enough to understand what it is
    Posted by THEILDJ at 11:06 AM : Apr 27, 2009


    Hmmmmm... McLame made his position very clear in the interview. Maybe you didn't get it.
    Reply to this comment
    by down-ndirty April 28, 2009 1:51 AM EDT
    Hmm Lets see International Law, gee a lot of the enemy do it every day. You do not even know his position because your not smart enough to understand what it is
    Posted by THEILDJ at 11:06 AM : Apr 27, 2009


    Hmmmmm... McLame made his position very clear in the interview. Maybe you didn't get it.
    Reply to this comment
    by GM2009 April 27, 2009 11:56 PM EDT
    promaclaura

    Only because Cheney, his entire family and Rove and Feith, etc. have dominated the airwaves on this issue. That will change.
    Keep in mind that you inbred warmongers are the minority.
    Reply to this comment
    by vincan-2009 April 27, 2009 10:26 PM EDT
    McCain is such a loser. All republicans in our government know they have lost credibility when they say torture works in getting information when they know it is a lie. It is despicable that republicans are not wanting to know why our country tortured anyone. And, of course, torture is against the law. It is really because they played a major part in doing any and everything that Bush and Cheney wanted.
    Reply to this comment
    by MirrorMatter April 27, 2009 9:41 PM EDT
    Wow,

    Bob calls this an interview? McCain states, "No one has alleged, quote, wrongdoing, They have alleged that this advice was wrong, and that somehow these people [i.e., the lawyers] that gave this advice, should be subject to criminal prosectution." Bob never challenges this in any way. Of course, people are asserting more than bad legal advice. They are asserting that the actions outlined in the memo are obviously torture under the Geneva Conventions, that the lawyers would have to have known this [McCain always knew it], and that they knowingly justified torture in the context of legal memos, likely from pressure from the administration, to give operatives immunity to torture people. Assistant counsel to Secretary of State Rice is on record of having written a memo to high administration officials, arguing that the torture memos were not anywhere close to mainstream legal thought on this matter. Bob has to be aware of this. He totally lets McCain get away with telling the public this is just about a difference of legal opinion. Does Bob agree to this softpedal beforehand, or is it fairly assumed? George Stephanopoulis would not have allowed this.

    Next, Bob lets McCain state that accountability in the court of public opinion is enough. He never asks him, "Arn't we obligated as a nation which promotes the rule of law to follow the evidence and the let the chips fall where they may. You [McCain] have just stated that laws have been broken [i.e., conceded the torture]. Doesn't this even warrant an investigation by our law enforcement branch?"

    Bob also let's McCain get away with stating that this is just about lawyers. Bob knows that most people want to know what kind of pressure from administration officials was brough to bear on these lawyers. How were the memo created? Were drafts sent back stating that more torture was needed? There is also the additional allegation that torture of certain individuals may have been ordered even before the memos were created. Both Bob and McCain know of these allegations and Bob just let's McCain characterize this as lawyers having an off day.

    But perhaps most amazing, McCain in a serious senior moment, after stating he would not favor a special prosecuter to look into the matter despite his view that laws were broken and torture committed in contravention of the Geneva Conventions, states: "And by the way, those that say that our enemies won't abide by the Geneva Conventions . . . They will if they know that there is going to be retribution for their violation of them." Wow, did he just say that? Does Bob then ask him, "Well, by retribution do you mean the scolding by public opinion that you [McCain] are suggesting for Americans who ordered or participated in torture. How can we insist on any serious 'retribution' if we are unwilling to do anything about our own misdeeds." No, he just moves on.

    I feel sorry for John McCain. He has lost himself. I get it. He is not immune from the desire to retain political power and remain relevant. His position against waterboarding as torture was so clear. But now he can't bring himself to follow his principles and assert that everyone involved needs to come to account. We need to know what everyone did and how it came about and prosecute where warranted. He knows this would leave him a Republican pariah. I heard him say once that he learned from his involvement with the Keating 5, and he deeply regretted not standing for what he knew was right with respect to the confederate flag flying over state capitals. I understood that even a man of deep principles can make mistakes. But John has now too many times come to that crossroad of principle and popularity and failed. I think in time he is self aware enough to come to realize his failure and will be caused great pain to know that he failed to live up to his own standards of an American. His punishment will be great indeed. I'm sorry for you John.
    Reply to this comment
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