Bad Deeds for 4-22-2009

 

Abusive Tactics Used to Seek Iraq-al Qaida Link According to Report – The Bush administration applied relentless pressure on interrogators to use harsh methods on detainees in part to find evidence of cooperation between al Qaida and the late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime, according to a former senior U.S. intelligence official and a former Army psychiatrist.

Such information would’ve provided a foundation for one of former President George W. Bush’s main arguments for invading Iraq in 2003. In fact, no evidence has ever been found of operational ties between Osama bin Laden’s terrorist network and Saddam’s regime.

A former senior U.S. intelligence official familiar with the interrogation issue said that Cheney and former Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld demanded that the interrogators find evidence of al Qaida-Iraq collaboration.

“There was constant pressure on the intelligence agencies and the interrogators to do whatever it took to get that information out of the detainees, especially the few high-value ones we had, and when people kept coming up empty, they were told by Cheney’s and Rumsfeld’s people to push harder,” he continued.

 

Secession-Sympathizing Hannity Attacks Obama’s Patriotism, Suggests Obama Should Be Investigated By DHS – One night after Sean Hannity enthusiastically endorsed Gov. Rick Perry’s threat of secession, Hannity, without a moment of irony, was viciously maligning President Barack Obama’s patriotism, even going so far as to suggest Obama should be investigated by the Department of Homeland Security. Hannity’s chief gripe was that Obama didn’t show enough love for his country. But that didn’t stop Patriot Policeman Hannity from spewing a non-stop stream of hatred toward his president, his president’s administration, his country’s policies, and his fellow citizens who are liberal, all the while accusing THEM of being angry. In fact, it was hard to find a good word for his country in the entire 8:45 opening segment of the 4/17/09 edition of Hannity.

 

Planning for FreedomWorks’ 9/12 Rally Began Hours Before Glenn Beck Introduced His 9/12 Project on the Air – FreedomWorks began planning for a Washington rally over a month ago. Specifically, based on timestamps on their message board, they began applying for permits for a September 12th rally in the early afternoon of March 13th, 2009. March 13th sounded familiar last night, but I didn’t make an important connection.

As it turns out that, March 13th was also the day that Glenn Beck took to Fox News for his “We Surround Them” special. That night, he introduced his 9/12 project. There was an air of mystery surrounding Beck’s special. Fox News had organized national viewing parties in anticipation of a big announcement on the program. What he would say was not public (ahead of time).

Yet, somehow, FreedomWorks had a heads up. They applied for a permit for the same day, on the same day. Yet, still they deny the obvious coordination at the top of their recent tantrum. I’m not sure that Fox and FreedomWorks can sustain that position any more.

(What a great name for this web site about the tea parties – It’s called “Save the Rich!”)

Regards,

Jim