Senate to probe Bush-era interrogation program

[Leo The Cleo]

http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_details/article/116%2C/2009/february/26/senate-to-probe-bush-era-interrogation-program.html

The Senate Intelligence Committee will try to settle the public debate over the CIA's harsh interrogation program by investigating whether those methods actually worked, Senate officials said Thursday. The investigation is an attempt to inject fact into an argument that is often shaped by anecdotes, news reports and the television show "24." Officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to disclose details of the committee's discussions.

President Barack Obama halted the CIA's interrogation program in January. The spy agency is now prohibited from employing methods not approved for use by the U.S. military while the program undergoes a White House review to determine whether additional interrogation methods may be necessary. The Senate committee review seeks to document what actually happened during CIA interrogations and whether valuable information was gained that would not have been obtained otherwise. A report is expected to be released in six months to a year.

The Senate probe is not meant as a first step toward prosecuting CIA officers who used harsh interrogations, the officials said. Obama administration officials have said they will not seek charges against those who were following guidelines set by the attorney general. The Intelligence Committee is already investigating the CIA's destruction in 2007 of videotapes of the interrogation of Abu Zubaydah in 2007 to encompass the origins and effectiveness of the so-called "enhanced interrogation program" authorized by President George W. Bush. Scores of secret documents have already been assembled by the committee.