Marc Thiessen is the author of Courting Disaster: How the CIA Kept America Safe and How Barack Obama Is Inviting the Next Attack , about which he wrote for us here. As White House speechwriter for George Bush, Thiessen was locked in a secure room and given access to the most sensitive intelligence when he was assigned the task of writing Bush’s September 2006 speech explaining the CIA’s interrogation program and why Congress should authorize it. Few men in a position to address the subject knowledgeably in public know more about these CIA operations than Thiessen.
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Yesterday Thiessen clashed with Amanpour and Sands on CNN. During the segment Thiessen confronted Amanpour with her wild misstatements about the CIA interrogations and disputed Sands’s assertion regarding the inefficacy of the techniques in issue. I don’t think Amanpour will be having Thiessen back any time soon.
you notice how lefties start to stutter and raise an air of unbelievable disgust at the thought that their views are being questioned. That Amanpour is a real piece of work, reminds me of that Al Jazeer fellow. They both suffer from the “I am me and you’re not” syndrome.
Pretty riveting. For some reason I expected more from Amanpour; but when confronted with crucial details, all she (and Sands) can rely on is interruption and the claim that he is splitting hairs.
He was very well prepared and did an admirable job in keeping his composure (not easy under the circumstances). The other two were smug and fell victim to their easy assumptions. At least, that’s how I saw it.
Most legal people I’ve read who know the laws of war well seem to agree that it would be very difficult, perhaps impossible, to prove in a court that waterboarding is torture — regardless of what the emotional and uninformed may think.
Typical liberal interview, over talk your guest, don’t let him or her answer, stack the deck, tow on one. Amanpour is one of the reasons I do not watch CNN.
I lost any respect I had for Amanpour when she was in a hotel in Baghdad complaining that the US was shooting at the hotel. Earth to Amanpour, if you stand next to the target on a rifle range you have only yourself to blame when you get shot.
Anampour lost a lot of credibility during the Balkan War.
But then, she was only parroting Pinetta and the White House policy of supporting Islamic terrorists in Bosnia.
“but I noticed wehre she goes is danger for regulare women to go”
Yeah she really should stay out of those Islamic countries they are dangerous for women.
…go where she paid to go and bring news without fact…
Heh
Got to love Amanpour. Thank god the illegal interrogation tactics have been stopped and exposed. They not only violated the Geneva convention, as did Canada’s turning over Afghan detainees knowing they’d be tortured, however in totality they were probably quite useless in obtaining any quantity of information. If they did, at what cost. This was all sanctioned under the Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld regime.
“as did Canada’s turning over Afghan detainees knowing they’d be tortured”
You mean the Liberal instituted program, right?
@ T,
I no supporter of torture and am on the fence regarding CIA waterboarding.
However no one in the interview was able to refute the facts he stated, that it was able to prevent several major terrorist attacks. The cost was the waterboarding of 3 terrorists.
Secondly he is correct. It does not violate the Geneva convention.
It’s like you cannot hear what people with facts are saying.
T – looks like you didn’t learn much from watching the interview. The Geneva Convention does not afford protection to terrorist. These are classed as “enemy combatants” in an undeclared war. They wear no uniform and have no adherence to any type of “Convention” be it Geneva or not.
“Thank god the illegal interrogation tactics have been stopped and exposed.”
As Theissen asked in the interview “which of the terrorist plots which had been uncovered by harsh interrogation tactics would you not want to have stopped”?
Silly infidels. Resistance is futile, since all forms of resistance—Guantanamo, US military, George Bush—are “recruitment tools”. So submit, or we will kill you.
This is just one of the reasons why I will not watch CNN. Amanpour and Sands are loathe to refute what Mr. Thiessan says. So much for a debate.
I fear that the only thing that will bring the Lefties out of their stupor is another attack. What a tragedy. And it will be almost impossible to blame George.
Almost.
But if there is a will…
OMG, the usual with the lefties: gang up on the guy with whom you disagree and keep interrupting him.
It was fascinating to watch with the sound turned down. Ms. Amanpour acts like an old school marm as she shakes her finger at Mark Thiessen who, amazingly, was able to keep his cool while being brow beaten by a harpy on his left and a lying zombie on his right.
Amanpour isn’t very bright — how did she get to where she is? — and this interview showed her up for being the drama queen she is, long on the histrionics and short on the facts. Check out the look on her face in video #2 @ the 1.17/18/19 mark. Her look says “I’m totally out of my depth here; what do I do now?”
How dare he refute the basis Lefty argument that the Geneva Convention is not being applied to these murdering scum. And if that’s not enough he has the nerve to suggest that waterboarding is a good thing to wring information out of these sheet heads. Obviously beneath comtempt, no matter how stupid he make the left appear.
Obama is a hopeless human and a dedicated enemy of the US. Up until now he’s been playing with children. The adults are about to enter the game and confront him on his actions. I predict he quits withing 6-9 months, or is impeached.
I’ve been to that S-21 prison in Phnom Phen, I wonder if Christina is even aware of the survival rates of those sent there vs those who were sent to Gitmo?
What a moron.
To compare the two is insane.
The numbers vary, but out of the 17,000 imprisoned there only a dozen or so left alive.
How many have died at Gitmo?
Since this thread is about journalists, there appears to e some good news in the media world. Glen Beck said on this afternoon’s show that as of 6 pm today Air America will be off the air.
Now, if only CBC and CTV could disappear also.
batb @5:33 – “Amanpour isn’t very bright — how did she get to where she is?…”
I was thinking just the same. The thing is, she’s lovely, in a stately sort of way, and she’s kinda exotic, and she has a posh British accent, which North Americans still tend to associate with braininess.
And she’s clearly a lefty of sorts.
That interview was deplorable. I don’t know why they bother. You need an hour for this sort of thing, and an interviewer who isn’t out to butcher her guest. Mealy-mouth Sands was there purely to take the pressure off Amanpour.
Don’t waste your time responding too utterances from “T”. A troll is a troll is a troll. Nothing “illegal” was done by anybody, unless you mean exposing field agents names while thy are still in the operational theater…As for Canada turning over detainee’s and the leftie barks at the moon everything is torture….Yawn. If the International Committee of the Red Cross had complaints, right within the Geneva Conventions it says they must act “without delay” To prosecute, to move forward on these cases. Don’t you think something would have happened by now.’Without delay’ means a few weeks or a few months. It doesn’t mean a in few years.
Try Terry Glavins blog:
http://transmontanus.blogspot.com/
So according to Thiessen, U.S. Intelligence can thwart Muslim terrorists by waterboarding because they view resistance as a duty but are okay with ultimately surrendering secret information. And the reason the U.S. officials are so good at it is because of their experience using it training various special forces e.i. Navy Seals.
We’ve lucked out on this. These Democrats are suicidal.
After a year of Obama and the ruling Democrat elite, the left ideological Democratic spin doesn’t have many takers any more in America. That’s obvious given the results in this weeks election of Scott Brown in what was the bluest seat in America.
Scott Brown’s campaign quote “This isn’t Ted Kennedy’s seat, it isn’t the Democrat’s seat. It is the people’s seat.” Is the best political quote in a long time, it will echo.
Also, if waterboarding was really torture there wouldn’t be any special forces left in shape to serve.
An effeminate America, without the confidence in it’s own historical values is viewed as weak. Self-imposed weakness inspires Jihiadis. Really, it’s the only thing they have going for them and demographics which is a related issue.
Eurabia having bodyguards simply to protect their politicians(Gert Wilders, Ayaan Hirsi Ali) who challenge Islamist fascism should be a warning. By not reacting to the assassination of Pim Fortyn, Theo Van Gogh and the threat to Salman Rushdie, they signaled that they can easily be intimidated. As long as it’s a debatable issue in Europe they have a chance.
Stan: “To compare the two is insane.”
And, isn’t that just typical of the left? They insist on equivalencies where there are none.
All faiths are the same, all cultures are the same, all prisons are the same.
And terrorists and legal combatants are the same.
???????????
Waterboarding stopped several planned attacks; what else does one need to know.
The Geneva convention doesn’t apply to terrorists; what else does one need to know.
Progressives would rather have civilians slaughtered by terrorists, than waterboard; what else does one need to know.
… and one other point; terrorists have NO legal standing. They aren’t even enemy combatants as that term doesn’t have legal status. One of the legal problems faced by the Bush Admininstration was that there is no legal box to put the scum in.
Therefore, I suggest a pine one.
That condescending Brit accent nonsense just irritates the hell outa me….
All I hear is….
OYVE GOT A JOB WITH THE HUMANE SOCIETY…..YEEW ARE IGNORANT AND UNEDURCATED BECAUSE YEW DISAGREE WIT MYY.
The accent is not charming or indicative of culture/intelligence but rather the direct opposite.
My opinion is they come cheap—give ’em a title or a uniform and they will do anything.
what happens when a subject of this ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ has no information to spill out of his guts? what then? how can they tell, at what point is the decision made they got the wrong guy?
it’s still TORTURE if there is no physical pain involved.
so go ahead all you theissen supporters, you continue to give a huge glaring green light to america’s enemies when THEY torture captured american personnel.
hearts and minds, hearts and minds.
“it’s still TORTURE if there is no physical pain involved.”
@ curious george
You could say the same thing about imprisonment: its a form of torture without pain.
The question is where does one ethically and humanely draw the line? Our ancestors drew the line at the right to not self incriminate, ie: to remain silent.
Do these terrorists deserve that right?
curious_george
[….what happens when a subject of this ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ has no information to spill out of his guts? what then? how can they tell, at what point is the decision made they got the wrong guy?]
That my boy is the difference between interrogation and torture.
Interrogating captured terrorists is not inciting terrorists—-they incite themselves and conducting REAL torture is SOP for terrorists.
Boy oh boy!
The lefticles sure hate to have their shiboleths shaken about…….
Big surprise?
Non…..
Brilliant … if we don’t waterboard them, terrorists will be nice to our guys … truly brilliant. Mind you, they’ll still try to bring down buildings full of civilians, or nuke a city, or take down airplanes full our friends and neighbours … but they’ll give hugs and kisses to our captured troops.
I can hardly contain myself at the thought that any human can be so insipient as to think that if we are nice to terrorists; they won’t recruit, won’t be barbaric, and will stop their terror tactics … the conceptual dissonance is so vacuous it’s hard to wrap one’s head around yet these progressive dunderheads actual believe the noises that come out their pieholes.
Technically under the Geneva Conventions it is within our rights to shoot illegal combatants. Personally, I think that as we are dealing with a cultural ideology and not a direct attack by another nation, we can throw out the Book of Rules when dealing with them. We should use all means at our disposal until the cancer has been excised… and we should have started at home with our little gang from Toronto.
OMG – I could have ripped Ammanpour a new one. By her standards, it isn’t torture if they are just water boarding armed forces personnel during training exercises, but it IS torture if they are doing it to a terrorists.
No wonder no one watches CNN. Why do smart folks even bother being interviewed by them?
“SANDS: Christiane, can I put one question to Marc? If it’s not torture and if it’s not a problem, do you have any objection to American nationals being waterboarded in other countries? Do you have any objection to American servicemen and women being subjected to waterboarding?
THIESSEN: American servicemen and women are lawful combatants who are protected by the Geneva Conventions. Terrorists who are — who are unlawful combatants, who target innocent men and women and — and women are not lawful combatants, and you can interrogate them differently.
AMANPOUR: Can I ask you, Marc…
(CROSSTALK)
THIESSEN: But the point is — why is — why is — I want to ask you, Philippe. Why is waterboarding American servicemembers…
(CROSSTALK)
THIESSEN: Let me answer — let me finish now. Why is waterboarding American servicemembers not torture? Or do we torture our troops?
AMANPOUR: They’re only done in training, as you know.
SANDS: I think training is a completely different thing.
THIESSEN: OK. So you acknowledge that not all waterboarding is torture? So when we waterboard our troops, it’s not torture?
AMANPOUR: Marc, come on.
THIESSEN: What?
SANDS: I find it incredible, Marc, that you would — you would suggest that an American serviceman or woman who is put through that process knowing that the moment he asks for it to stop it will be stopped could be the same thing as being waterboarded…
(CROSSTALK)
-end of quote-
Wow. Disingenuous, dishonest Thiessen tries to cloud the issue by playing a semantic game. When SERE soldiers are trained to withstand torture he claims that means the military is ‘torturing’ its own soldiers.
He asks: Why is waterboarding our own soldiers not torture? Or do we not torture our own troops?
It’s called ‘training’, dimwit.
But actually he’s not so dim. He inserted the point there purposely to cloud the issue and confuse. And the reason he has to cloud the issue is because he has no legitimate point to make. It isn’t possible that he confuses a supervised training scenario in SERE for a torture session enacted on suspected terrorists. It’s merely a gambit for him to buy time.
It’s a ‘reveal’, a ‘tell’. It shows he’s willing to engage in any mistruth to defend the indefensible. For the same reason that many of you do the same thing: he’s in love with evil.
I heard Marc interviewed on Ed Morrissey’s show earlier this week. Unlike Amanpour et al, Ed let him answer questions and make his points, and he made some very good and informative ones for those willing to actually listen (and comprehend).
Kate..It’s hard to ignore the trolls…especially when they say such silly things.
Thanks troll.. now we know that we and Thiessen love evil, but the terrorists …not so much.
kill ’em all and let allah (pbuh) sort it out
when are we gonna start seeing $20 oil again? isn’t that what this WHOLE 10 year episode of ‘spot the bad guy’ is *actually* about ?
howcum the american embassy in baghdad is the most costly one ever built? just how long does the white house administration of [enter POTUS name here] plan on having a presence in iraq?
do some time travel SDA, use your imagination. how long are huge numbers of american mil. personnel going to be in iraq? here’s a hint: consider american mil. involvement in central america during the plantation heydays.
$20 oil? You think this is about saving money? This is about protecting vital energy reserves. That oil was discovered, exploited, and produced with 100% western technology, and investment. The lazy, useless natives got filthy rich off it, without ever raising a finger.
Compare this with Alberta oil. Albertans have been involed, at every level, since the first discovery. We have a legitimate claim on the spoils of this resource.
Those semi-human ME thugs are just along for the ride. Allowing them to jeodardize that investment would be unthinkable. I just wish an American president would come out and tell it like it is. I think people might just appreciate some clarity.
“when are we gonna start seeing $20 oil again?”.
Never, I hope. Nobody will drill.
The lefties say that our judicial system can take care of the terrorist problem: http://fwix.com/twincities/share/a898163a9f/somali_terror_suspect_being_sent_to_halfway_house
“so go ahead all you theissen supporters, you continue to give a huge glaring green light to america’s enemies when THEY torture captured american personnel.”
So what you are saying is that if the yanks don’t torture people the islmoterorists won’t either.
YA-RIGHT!!!
I don’t know how he stood talking to Ammanpour and Sands. Sanctimonious snots both of them and uninformed to boot. He had to educate them but even then you could almost hear them sniffing.
Terrorists are NOT afforded Geneva Conventions rights. Period. Yet, now the left intend to not only afford Geneva rights but the rights of a US citizen as well and US taxpayers will pay the bill. And we all pay the price of their snotty ignorance. Perhaps if that bill is too high we will cease to tolerate their idiocy. It is the kind of stupidity that gets people killed. ALL THE TIME. Pray for our countries and our troops. And don’t forget that Friday is Red Friday in honour of our troops.
Time for Christine and others to watch a beheading video or two.
Where’s her f$%king Geneva Convention?
Water-whatever is small potatoes.