Petraeus Endorses Obama's Plans To Close GITMO, End Torture

[jefferson_dem]

Petraeus Endorses Obama's Plans To Close GITMO, End Torture

General David Petraeus said this past weekend that President Obama's decision to close down Gitmo and end harsh interrogation techniques would benefit the United States in the broader war on terror.

In an appearance on Radio Free Europe Sunday, the man hailed by conservatives as the preeminent military figure of his generation left little room for doubt about where he stands on some of Obama's most contentious policies.

"I think, on balance, that those moves help ," said the chief of U.S. Central Command. "In fact, I have long been on record as having testified and also in helping write doctrine for interrogation techniques that are completely in line with the Geneva Convention. And as a division commander in Iraq in the early days, we put out guidance very early on to make sure that our soldiers, in fact, knew that we needed to stay within those guidelines.

"With respect to Guantanamo," Petraeus added, "I think that the closure in a responsible manner, obviously one that is certainly being worked out now by the Department of Justice -- I talked to the Attorney General the other day they have a very intensive effort ongoing to determine, indeed, what to do with the detainees who are left, how to deal with them in a legal way, and if continued incarceration is necessary -- again, how to take that forward. But doing that in a responsible manner, I think, sends an important message to the world, as does the commitment of the United States to observe the Geneva Convention when it comes to the treatment of detainees."

The remarks appear to be the first from Petraeus since the closure of Guantanamo and Bush Administration use of enhanced interrogation techniques became hot-button partisan issues. They couldn't come at a better time for Obama. The president has found himself under intense political heat after the United States Senate soundly rejected his request for funds to shut down the prison. Dueling speeches between Obama and Cheney this past Thursday, moreover, did little to tamp down the controversy over the president's release of memos depicting the legal authorization fro the use of torture.

<SNIP>

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/26/petraeus-endorses-obamas_n_207513.html

[Uzybone]

1. Another person choosing humanity over barbarism

leaving Cheney and Rush pretty lonely.

[ShortnFiery]

3. I don't think the relatives of Col. Westhusing would consider Petraeus fully "human."

Interesting how all those corruption investigations "went away" after this suicide.

My point: The FOXES (same corrupt military/civilian leadership) are still in charge of the henhouse (DOD/Pentagon).

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/greg-mitchell/gen-petraeus-and-a-high_b_94458.html

Twelve days after Westhusing's body was found, Army investigators talked with his widow, who told them: "I think Ted gave his life to let everyone know what was going on. They need to get to the bottom of it, and hope all these bad things get cleaned up."

Bryce concluded: "In September 2005, the Army's inspector general concluded an investigation into allegations raised in the anonymous letter to Westhusing shortly before his death. It found no basis for any of the issues raised. Although the report is redacted in places, it is clear that the investigation was aimed at determining whether Fil or Petraeus had ignored the corruption and human rights abuses allegedly occurring within the training program for Iraqi security personnel." Since then, the corruption and failed training angles have drawn wide attention although the Petraeus's role, good or bad, has not.

The writer returned to the case this past February with another Texas Observer article. I've run out of space here so I will merely quote its opening and link to it:

Since last March, when I wrote a story about the apparent suicide of Col. Ted Westhusing in Iraq, I had believed there was nothing else to write about his tragic death.
But in December, I talked to a source in the Department of Defense who met Westhusing in Iraq about three months before his death. The source, who asked not to be identified for fear of reprisals, was investigating claims of wrongdoing against military contractors working in Iraq. After a short introduction, I asked him what he thought had happened to Westhusing. 'I think he was killed. I honestly do. I think he was murdered,' the source told me. 'Maybe DOD didn't have enough evidence to call it murder, so they called it suicide.'"

[ShortnFiery]

2. General Peaches is a highly intelligent American Psycho. The most DANGEROUS kind ...

are those with super-high intelligence who can morph into whatever "the boss" wants them to be.

However, if you look under the surface, at the CORE of the man's character you'll find "a heart of darkness."

[Jennicut]

4. I agree. But maybe he was "pressured" to go along.

[ShortnFiery]

5. I fear "General Peaches" has political aspirations. I live in an area where

there's many AD military, veterans and retirees. The word I hear from those who have observed Petraeus "up close" is that he's THE most Ambitious Man on the face of this Planet.

That's why I try to tamp down excitement about him "doing the right thing."

Please don't confuse his momentary bouts of sanity with that of the esteemed Dwight D. Eisenhower. They are NOT cut from the same cloth.

Petraeus' ambitions frightens me ... especially if we get hit again, I pray we don't turn to someone like him to lead our Nation.