Monday, July 20, 2009

Probe launched into Cheney's CIA Hit-Squads

The House Intelligence Committee will launch an investigation to determine whether the CIA broke the law by not informing Congress earlier about a secret plan to train teams to kill Al Qaeda leaders abroad. Committee Chairman Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-Tex., announced the investigation in a statement Friday, saying the inquiry "will focus on the core issue of how the congressional intelligence committees and Congress are kept fully and currently informed. As I have said in the past, the committee supports the efforts of the CIA workforce in its difficult mission to keep America safe. I intend to make this investigation fair and thorough, and it is my goal that it will not become a distraction to the men and women of the CIA."

The committee will determine whether the CIA violated the National Security Act, which requires, with rare exceptions, that Congress be informed of covert activities. But the top Republican on the House committee is skeptical that the investigation will be conducted in a bipartisan manner, claiming that Democrats are "putting their partisan conclusions ahead of facts" because the facts don't support the idea that the National Security Act was violated. "In the absence of substantiated facts, to even speculate on potential criminal behavior shows that this is little more than partisan, political theater and continues the politicization of important intelligence matters by Democrats," Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., said in a statement.

CIA Director Leon Panetta told the committee about the program on June 24, a day after he first learned of the program and canceled it himself. Panetta told the committee that as vice president Dick Cheney had directed the CIA not to inform Congress about the operation, sparking an outcry among Democrats. Republicans have dismissed Democratic outrage about the Panetta revelation as an attempt to provide political cover to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who in May accused the CIA of lying to her in 2002 about its use of waterboarding. Hoekstra echoed that argument in his statement Friday when he expressed hope that the committee can reach a bipartisan agreement on how to investigate the issue. "But at no time will the Republicans of this committee agree to or take part in congressional Democrats efforts to tear down the CIA to provide cover for Speaker Pelosi," he said.

There was also some speculation floated that UNETIDA Special Operations Commander, Colonel "Whopper" Creedon was asked to train the CIA assassins, but he was unavailable for comment at press time.

Source: FoxNews

10 comments:

vaughan said...

Because Terrorising Terrorists that would be wrong. Ah yes good old Democrats......these of course are the same Democrats who in 1998 not only had Osama Bin Laden located but had a CIA Kill squad begging to execute him (they literally had him in their sights) but certain members of the Clinton administration cancelled the mission at the last minute because they were worried of the "political" implications....what excellent foresight there democrats!

Civilian Overseer said...

Mr.V, What seperates us from the terrorists?.

vaughan said...

I'm not sure if I understand the way you've phrased the question , if you mean a sense of Judical process of course, if you mean that every person has the right to a trial of course....however Osama way back in 98 was on the ten most wanted list, the Clinton administration had already bombed milk factories in the sudan ...in retaliation for the fact that Al Queda had already tried to blow up the WTC in 92 , Al queda had attacked the U.S.S Cole and bombed the embassies in Kenya (killing over 200 kenyans) . Of course the C.I.A running death squads is deplorable but as I said it was a C.I.A hit squad that had located Osama back in 98 ...the only reason the Democrats decided not to kill the son of a bitch is that they were more worried about how America would look and the political ramifications both home and abroad ( I remember a certain Robert Fisk laughing at the Idea that Osama was dangerous and that it was a plan by the Clinton administration to divert attention from lewinskygate) Because of their Indecision the world is in a far worse mess but for Democrats to feign outrage and claim that somehow that they never ran covert ops or assinations ....well that's hypocrisy

Civilian Overseer said...

Excellent, "Due Process" was the answer that I was looking for.

Possibly the Clinton administration was worried about what the rest of the world would think about America if they took such unilateral action.

The Bush administration had no such qualms, they chose to take unilateral action and look at America's standing in the world.

Regardless of a Democratic or Republican administration, When a Government choses to disregard the laws it was elected to uphold, both domestic and international then it is a very bad thing for everyone. Think of Somalia, Sudan, Afganistan, Shadar Logoth even.

Major General Creedon said...

@ Civvy: You? The fact you don't take up arms against anyone.
Me? 1) Uniform, 2) Apologies when civilians die. 3) Reparations and rebuilding infrastructure that are destroyed. And 4) The fact that blowing myself up to destroy innocent civilians goes against everything I believe in.

Civilian Overseer said...

Colonel, Yes, it is I,

"The fact you don't take up arms against anyone

Now, that's not entirely true now is it?, I believe the use of Force is just one of the tools in a modern nation state's arsenal. We would be foolish to ignore the opportunities that weapons such as diplomacy and economic influence afford us.

I merely advanced the idea that it is unhealthy for the government of a civilized country to engage in uncivilized behaviour.

If it is ok for governments to disregard laws and social values when fighting terrorists, pretty soon it becomes ok for those same governments to put aside those very same laws when dealing with ordinary citizens.

My local authority has recently been rapped on the knuckles for using anti terrorism legislation to spy on a three year old girl to determine if she lived in the catchment area of the school her parents had applied for. That's a bit extreme.

Now the local authority was only rebuked by the government when the press broke the story, the anti terrorism powers that the local authority abused where not taken away from them, no one was fired or disciplined.

As a Parent I find it disturbing that my local authority can misuse such powers, any parent would be concerned that their local authority can hired a shady private investigator to stalk their child.

Don't you agree Colonel, that this is disturbing or do you support the practice of governments employing strange men to spy on and take pictures of toddlers?

"The fact that blowing myself up to destroy innocent civilians goes against everything I believe in." I very strongly agree, it goes against all civilized behaviour. Terrorists are uncivilized that does not mean that we have to give up our values and become worse than them to fight them. We are civilized, let us conduct ourselves as such.

vaughan said...

Those are Ideas worth dying for Overseer....Ironically Al Queda consider them to be a weakness..the problem I have is the Democrats are trying to find every way of going over what the Bush Administration did....we get it you won the election now move on and actually do something ....it's been six months and the Democrats are still crowing on about their victory ignoring problems such as the probabilty that Obama is going to have to keep GITMO open....in the states people are turning on the Dems over that very fact, that they have done nothing....they seem to be more obsessed with what the Bush Administration did than moving on and getting the country back on it's feet.

Civilian Overseer said...

Mr.V, too many people want to die for their ideals, the hard thing do is to live up to those ideals on a daily basis.

Constance said...

Oh snap!

Former Grunt said...

America is going to hell!!! Now the CIA will have to practically inform Congress when they're making a stationary order for new staplers in case they'll be use in torture senarios and the president is interfering with the arrests of people just because they're his friends! What the fuck is going on???