May 27, 2009 / by emptywheel

 

CIA: Focus on the Beatings, Not the Incompetence

fatster linked to this CQ article, quoting a former CIA ops officer admitting the CIA dissembles to Congress–and suggesting the CIA likes this controversy, because it makes them look tough.

"The interrogations controversy has served the CIA bureaucracy," Jones asserted. "A top goal of bureaucracy is to look busy, and whether one agrees with the interrogation methods or not, the impression given is that the CIA is both busy and aggressive."

Jones added: "It relishes this ‘cowboy’ image, and its greatest fear is that the taxpayer might figure out how little it actually is doing.

"Bans or restrictions on interrogations," he added, "would have the constructive effect of removing this smokescreen, this distraction, and redirecting focus to what exactly the CIA is doing to provide the foreign intelligence the president needs."

All the more reason to bring Ali Soufan back, to talk about how James Mitchell’s torturers tortured because they didn’t have the linguistic skills, knowledge of Al Qaeda, or background in interrogation to do it right.

Copyright © 2009 emptywheel. All rights reserved.
Originally Posted @ https://www.emptywheel.net/2009/05/27/cia-focus-on-the-beatings-not-the-incompetence/