Senator Udall: IF TORTURE REPORT IS KILLED, I'll 'Use Every Power I Have' TO REVEAL IT

[Segami]

MARK UDALL PROMISES AMERICA WILL "BE DISGUSTED" AT CIA TORTURE REPORT And that he'll use every power he still has to declassify it.

The Senate Intelligence Committee, led by Dianne Feinstein of California, is soon expected to release its summary of the so-called CIA Torture Report, the committee’s four-year-long investigation into the CIA’s Bush-era torture practices. Release of the summary is the result of months of wrangling and negotiating with the White House on what would be released to the public and when—and it will likely be heavily redacted. During an interview conducted on Friday, November 21, by Esquire writer at large Scott Raab, outgoing senator Mark Udall of Colorado, who lost his reelection race on November 4, once again said that if the report is not released in a way he deems transparent, he would consider all options to make it public. In this excerpt from the interview, Raab asks Udall if he will read the document into the record on the floor of the Senate before he leaves in January, an act for which he cannot be prosecuted.

The full interview will be published in the January 2015 issue of Esquire.

Scott Raab: Your loss is seen as symbolic of the midterm sea change. How does it feel?

Mark Udall: It stings and I feel liberated. . . . I don’t like losing. I don’t like being turned back from the summit of a mountain—I’m a mountain climber—but I have always found that the mountains I didn’t climb are the ones that taught me the most. So I’m taking that attitude towards this election loss. . . . But it’s been hard to be here for the last couple of weeks. When you get fired, usually it’s “Clean your desk out and go,” and I’ve got two months of work left to do. We do have some things I’m working hard to get accomplished. I want to get the CIA Torture Report declassified.

SR: I’ve been puzzling through this. You’ve talked about how Edward Snowden should come back.

MU: Yep.


SR: But he’s gonna be charged with crimes that could put him behind bars forever. And you’re in a position to read this into the public record.

MU: Sure. Yeah.

SR: Is there any reason not to do that? Not do what Mike Gravel did with the Pentagon Papers? What is the tightrope there? You got a $40 million 6,300-page report, right?

MU: Yes.

SR: And all the pressure’s on you right now to—

MU: I have made it clear over the last couple of weeks—if the report is not declassified in a way that’s transparent and shines a bright light on what we did, then I will consider using all and any options.

SR: I’ve heard this before.

MU: And right now, we are at the point where I’m still optimistic that the White House, working with a committee, is going to do the right thing, which is to declassify the report in a way that’s understandable and transparent. And so I’m working through what we call regular order here in Washington. But if, in my opinion, the report is either—obviously, if it’s not released, then I’m gonna use every power I have, because it’s too important. It’s too historic. And we can’t afford to repeat the mistakes to let this slide.

. . . .

SR: So you don’t just have the report, you have an agency that hacked the committee’s computers.


MU: Right. Four times. Four times.


SR: You called for CIA director John Brennan’s resignation.

MU: There are some that would like this report never to see the light of day. There are some that are running out the clock. There are some that are raising the specter that the CIA employees involved would somehow be subject to not only threats but potential action that would affect their personal safety. Those personnel, if they have that worry, can be given some legitimate security. . . .

The people who conducted these activities in the name of the CIA, in the name of the American people, have a right to be processed. They don’t have a right to [pause] push under the rug what happened.

SR: Right.

MU: What happened broke faith in the Constitution. It’s made our challenge much greater when it comes to facing the threat of Islamic fundamentalism. And it is morally repugnant. When this report is declassified, people will abhor what they read. They’re gonna be disgusted. They’re gonna be appalled. They’re gonna be shocked at what we did. But it will lay a foundation whereby we don’t do this in the future. That’s been my goal. That’s been my mission.

cont'



http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/mark-udall-0115

[thesquanderer]

1. Now if we could just get someone as committed...

...to release the 28 redacted pages of the 9/11 report...

[billhicks76]

27. 911 Exactly

We would be even more disgusted when we discover Bush family friends organizing the terror attack.

[Initech]

34. I wouldn't be surprised in the least if the Saudis planned 9/11...

And then played Iraq and Afghanistan for chumps.

[mylye2222]

2. THis report is only DELAYED. Nit killed.

Releasing it right now ciuld hurt Uran negocuations. What some of here prefer. A fail of the negociations? A return of war with Iran proners?

[CJCRANE]

5. They already know plenty about this and have a negative opinion on it.

It would be far better to come clean, admit any mistakes and make sure no one can get away with this again, so that other countries can trust America again.

[Segami]

6. Stopping this report at all costs.....

"..Sen. Udall: There are some that would like this report never to see the light of day. There are some that are running out the clock..."

[yeoman6987]

32. His clock is really short

As long as he does it legally, he should be ok. I doubt he goes into politics again anyway.

[merrily]

39. He can simply read it into the Senate record, as Gravel did with the Pentagon papers.

The Constitution gives immunity for that.

[sabrina 1]

10. The only people in the world who don't know what 'we did' as Udall refers to it, are the AMERICAN

PEOPLE! So releasing it can only HELP our reputation with the many countries whose citizens were tortured, some to death. It is our protection of these war crimes that has caused so much hatred for this country. We claim to abide by the rule of law, and then show the world we do not, by protecting WAR CRIMINALS.

If you think that the world, especially countries who suffered under those crimes, don't know what is in that report, you haven't been paying attention to all the victims, those who survived, who have been trying to get some justice in various countries, for what was done to them.

Some of those victims, eg, were British subjects and have described what was done to them so anyone who has followed the torture crimes back to when they were first revealed, which began in late 2003, knows a good deal of what is in those files.

It would enhance our reputation to a great extent to show the world we will not protect such grotesque and massive crimes against humanity.

I suspect the reason why there is an attempt to hide this from the people is we are going to see famous, or infamous names in the report. Some of Bush's torture henchmen. And we've waited a long time to see that.

I hope Udall does read it into the record if there is an attempt to suppress it. I hope he remains safe.

[merrily]

40. Yep, we are usually the bozos they are trying to keep in the dark.

[rhett o rick]

22. Do you have a source for that or is it your wishful thinking?

There will always be that excuse.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

36. Word salad aside. Explain to me how the torture of a bunch of Sunni Muslims is going to

affect negotiations with the fundamentalist Shia government of Iran.

[merrily]

41. Sunni or Shia, it's not as though Iran is unaware we tortured "folks."

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

57. They have one of the best intelligence services in the region of course they know more about you and

I or anyone else here what went down. The excuses are just getting pathetic.

[merrily]

58. Sigh. They often are.

A lot of times, my thought is "Say anything." Or simply, "huh?"

One post said the other night that there was no real point in releasing the report now because history will have it anyway and there was no legislative or judicial action to be affected by it now.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

59. And I'd be willing to bet that same poster would be losing their shit if this was being delayed

under President's Jeb Rand Christie's administration. No matter the reassurances by SEO Gohmmert.

[merrily]

60. That was very close to what I said!

The speculation on the thread, including from me, was that the info was being held back lest it further sour USians on more Middle Eastern "military initiatives." I said that had Bush held back info until he could be sure that USians had been sold on the Iraqi invasion DUers would be screaming and rightly so. The accusation came back that I was equating Obama/Isis with Bush/Iraq. I pointed out that I hadn't even compared the Presidents, let alone equated them. I had made a statement about DUers.

There was a reply, but, between you and me, I didn't even click to read it. There's only so much "Say anything" I can stomach in one thread before I hurl.

[Autumn]

3. Every time I think of Mark and that fucker Gardner sitting in his place I get sick.

This man is wise and such a loss to our Government.

[Lugano]

23. Gardner will be in trouble shortly...

And Senate Ethics committee will have no choice but to expel his sorry ass.

[Esse Quam Videri]

54. Could you explain?

How is he going to be in trouble?

[otohara]

61. Ridiculous - SIX Years

Cory Gardner will be the senator from the once great state of CO

[KingCharlemagne]

4. Is there not one Daniel Ellsberg amongst us? Not one? - nt

[merrily]

42. It's a Senate report and Udall is threatening to be a Gravel.

So, an Ellsberg is not necessary, assuming Udall is not just blustering.

[KingCharlemagne]

50. Small historical note: Ellsberg went to several congresscritters with

the PP first to try to get them to release them. He met with no success there and so leaked to the New York Times. (I don't remember whether Gravel is one of the Senators whose aid Ellsberg solicited unsuccessfully before leaking the PP to the Times.)

[merrily]

51. Thanks.

[BrotherIvan]

7. I hope he stays safe

He is threatening some very powerful people. I hope he wins.

[exboyfil]

26. He should stay off private airplanes

[BrotherIvan]

33. He should stay off all airplanes and get a body guard

I'm not kidding. You don't mess with these people lightly. I hope he is able to get the report out for everyone to see just how low the United States has sunk.

[Enthusiast]

49. +1

[sadoldgirl]

8. One can only hope

that Udall sticks to this. I think that Feinstein will cave to
Kerry. Udall does not have much time to act.

[TwilightGardener]

9. Do what you gotta do, Mark.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

11. Good. Report it and prosecute the torturers...er.."patriots under a lot of stress".

[merrily]

43. No prosecution for anyone acting under legal advice, even if the legal advice

came AFTER the torture.

That's the policy of the Obama administration. Yoo and Bybee gave the legal opinions. Bybee got a seat on the Circuit Court of Appeals for his cooperation and Yoo teaches only God knows what to the lawyers of the future (shudder).

Holder found nothing blameworthy on the part of Yoo or Bybee, not even enough to write a letter to their respective state bar associations. Case closed.

According to Amnesty International, torture continued. According to many sources, drone killings increase six times over.

Hope and change.

[Ichingcarpenter]

12. We need a senator that exposed the Pentagon Papers

and told the truth and didn't care what he would lose if he told the truth.

you know who I'm talking about.

UTah..... can do this
his father was a good soul

[merrily]

44. Senator Mike Gravel. He ran for President in 2008 and was largely ignored by Dems.

He switched to Libertarian in March of 2008 and got nowhere with them either. So, he announced he was out of politics.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Gravel

[kentuck]

13. What's stopping them??

Who are they working for? The CIA?

[malaise]

14. Good

What a freaking mess

[DeSwiss]

15. CORRUPTION, AMERICA IS THY NAME.

K&R

[billhicks76]

29. Udall Is A Real Hero

Putting your life in danger does not make one a hero if you're committing heinous crimes like torture.

[spanone]

16. k&r.... expose cheney/CIA torture program...it's imperative.

[deminks]

17. Make it happen, Senator. Times a tickin'.

[Octafish]

18. Hope he releases it, then runs for President in 2016.

He'd be in a position to drain the swamp.

[JDPriestly]

19. We shall see whether Udall really has the courage to follow through on his promises.

I will not hold my breath. He is already compromising by waiting. He should just go ahead and read it into the Congressional Record. What is there to lose? He has immunity when he speaks in Congress. If he does not do it now, the new Congress may pass an act not to publish it. He needs to go for it and forget about the commission. The NSA did not wait for a commission when it interfered in the investigation process.

[rhett o rick]

21. I wish he would read it into the record but it's his life and his family that would

suffer.

[JDPriestly]

24. Maybe. Maybe not. Depends on facts that I do not know.

He enjoys legislative immunity. It's in the Constitution. Maybe he could sue if someone harmed him because he published it.

[merrily]

45. Judging by all the references to private planes, I'm guessing prosecution is not the

only thing posters are considering.

Gravel is still alive, but those were better days. I think we really may be in House of Cards territory these days.

[earthside]

55. This is Mark Udall we're talking about.

I'd say there is a 90 percent chance that this story will fade away ... and Mark Udall will fade away and we will never hear of it again.

Udall was not exactly a profile in courage as our U.S. Senator from Colorado. Over his six years in the Senate, he would occasionally talk like this, but then never carry through. If he had even once or twice taken a principled, populist, stand and stuck with it on an issue, he might have gotten re-elected.

So, I'll believe it when I see that Mark Udall reads this torture report into the Senate record.
It won't happen, is my prediction.

[calimary]

20. LEAK IT, Senator Udall!

Do one of those "OOOPSIE! Gee, I have NO IDEA how it got out..." things.

Find a way to leak it out. You don't need "power." Just let it leak. Then stand back. All it'd take would be some casual meeting at some coffee place or lunch counter with someone in the press or the blogs. You've gotta know ANY of them would love to help with this - it's an awfully juicy scoop.

[WillyT]

25. All He Has To Do Is Enter It Into The Congressional Record... Check This Out:

DULink: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10025833150

[MADem]

28. He can "pull a Mike Gravel." His speech on the floor of the Senate is protected.

Read it into the record, as the article indicates. He SHOULD do that, if he feels strongly about it, IMO.

I'm not sure what the vague "threats via Esquire" are doing--maybe he's trying to get an audience of people who will care enough to engage their Senators on this issue? Or is this a shot across the bow at the Intel Committee?

[Major Hogwash]

37. But, but, but, he was one of the Turd Way Dems that lost his re-election race.

He won't leak it or read it on the Senate floor.
That wouldn't be fitting for a "Turd Wayer" such as Udall.

Now, after he has been kicked out of office, some of these same guys who labeled him unfit for office want him to leak the contents of that report.
What hypocrites!

[MADem]

38. Ain't that peculiar!!

I think a lot of the people who pretend they are so upset with the "Turd Way" wouldn't know a turd unless it hit them square in the face. And even then they'd be confused.

They'll turn on a dime if a few rabble rousers tell them what to say.

I'm pretty disgusted with some of the people who play that fool game. They're like pennants in the wind, they point whichever way the wind blows them. A lot of them think that Obama is a king who can make decrees (like implementing Keystone) with a wave of his cigarette lighter, or something. They don't understand the role of the Congress, they focus all their ire on the POTUS. It's like a team sport.

They don't seem to understand that whoever picks the Supreme Court is going to either make their lives better, or suckier--and cheering the demise of Democrats as Republicans run roughshod over our civil liberties is well...unprogressive, to say the least.

[gwheezie]

30. Mike Gravel was my 1st choice in 08

I knew he'd never get the nomination but I was hoping he'd make it to my primary. I remember the pentagon papers. It shook the country.

[merrily]

46. In 2008, he didn't make it in the Democratic Party or the Libertarian Party.

What he did about the Pentagon Papers was courageous, but I didn't think he made a good candidate in demeanor, debate, etc.

[gwheezie]

47. I Know I didn't think he'd make it far

But my thought was he was the only one of the bunch who would put the war out in the sunlight and let the chips fall where they may. He never made it to my primary anyway.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

56. Mine too.

[Feron]

31. I hope he backs that talk up with action.

And I hope that 'every effort' doesn't mean a few symbolic attempts and then nothing.

Americans need to know what's going on, but we have cowards and careerists in government.

My pessimistic projection is that Udall won't release/leak the full report, but I hope that I'm proven wrong.

[mountain grammy]

35. As a constituent, I will ask that he make this public..

[Leopolds Ghost]

48. Udall is the only Dem Senator (besides Ron Wyden) still pressing the NSA surveillance issue correct?

Funny how he lost by an unexpectedly wide margin in Colorado. But perhaps we're not allowed to think about why.

[drray23]

52. thats going to be a marathon

If he does go ahead and enters it into the congressional records, does he have to read every page or can he just say to enter it as a supporting document for his speech ?
If the former, its going to take him a while. 6300 pages at say, 2 mins per page is over 20 hours of talking..

[99Forever]

53. Good on you for trying Sen Udall.

It seems you are up against everything that is evil and wrong about our entire Federal government, so be very careful or you may not survive very long.