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Guantanamo should stay open, waterboarding OK: Cheney

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The Guantanamo "war on terror" detention center should remain open indefinitely, Vice President Richard Cheney told ABC News in an interview Monday, while also defending the harsh interrogation method known as waterboarding.

Cheney was asked when the detention camp at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba can be "responsibly" be shut down. "Well, I think that that would come with the end of the war on terror," he told ABC.

And when is that? "Well, nobody knows," Cheney said. "Nobody can specify that."

In previous wars, the United States has "always exercised the right to capture the enemy and then hold them until the end of the conflict. That's what we did in World War II with, you know, thousands, hundreds of thousands of German prisoners," Cheney said.

"The same basic principle ought to apply here in terms of our right to capture the enemy and hold them.

The other option, Cheney said, "is to turn them over to somebody else. A lot of them, nobody wants. I mean, there's a great resistance sometimes in the home countries to taking these people back into their own territory."

According to Cheney, some 30 detainees who were released from Guantanamo "ended up back on the battlefield again, and we've encountered them a second time around. But they've either been killed or captured in further conflicts with our forces."

Cheney also said he helped authorize interrogation methods used on Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, an al-Qaida operative detained in Pakistan and sent to Guantanamo who has confessed to being a top planner of the Sept 11, 2001 terror attacks in the United States.

Sheikh Mohammed was subjected to a forced interrogation method that simulates drowning known as waterboarding.

"I was aware of the program, certainly, and involved in helping get the process cleared, as the agency in effect came in and wanted to know what they could and couldn't do," Cheney said.

"And they talked to me, as well as others, to explain what they wanted to do. And I supported it," Cheney said.

ABC asked him if in hindsight he thought the tactics went too far. "I don't," Cheney said.

The Cheney interview is to air on ABC late Monday and early Tuesday, the network said, as it released an advanced transcript of the questions and answers.

© Wire reports

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

44 Comments
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It's alive? Well not actually. Thanks to GW staying off the coroner's slab, America dogged a big bullet with this dude. "Dugout Dick" perhaps the biggest chickenhawk of them all (who only leaves the White House to shoot his friends) will go down in history as a rather fleckless and ignomatic chap. Has anybody actually seen this guy? The totality of his existence seems to be issuing edicts from the "Fuhrer Bunker." Well that is when he or his flunkies are not ratting out serving CIA agents. Come on Dickster, when GW is back in Texas, you might get an even closer look at Guantanamo.

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I'm hoping that dick cheney makes a visit to Iraq and makes a press conference too.

he's good at shooting attornys, wonder how he does in a room full of Iraqi journalists?

dick cheney used his position in the whitehouse to profiteer off the lives and deaths of American and Iraqi military and civilians.

dick cheney is lower than a snake's belly.

There wouldn't be a POW prison in Guantanamo Bay if it wasn't for the lies created by he and doug feith. < :-)

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The Dickster has a bit of a bad heart (I mean medically rather than emotionally). Anyway, this prevents him from traveling to anywhere really. You will remember that Dick went to Afghanistan a while ago. While there he suffered a bit of PTSD, an explosion occurred about 10km away. It nearly caused a heart attack. As such, I cannot see him visiting Iraq in the near future, especially with all those A-rabs armed with shoes.

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"some 30 detainees who were released from Guantamano ended up back on the battlefield again"

They should never have been released.

"I hope Cheney gets chucked in there one day"

Dream on.

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"he's good at shooting attorneys, wonder how he does in a room full of Iraqi jounalists?

Har!

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Oh Gawd, Dick by name and a dick by nature.

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I think Cheney should at least give it a try for a while before deciding for sure his opinion on it.

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Waterboard The Angler then if it's OK.

Let's find out what the bastard knows....

...and heh, we all know a military dodging coward like cheney will break long before the water is turned on.

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Thank God this guy has only about 25 more days to screw up my country. He is an embarrassment to what the U.S. is supposed to stand for. I hope he and all his Haliburton friends get their just do.

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I wonder if Cheney, who dodged the draft during Vietnam (something Sarge would commend, maybe?), and McCain, who was subjected to more serious torture, have ever had a frank discussion about waterboarding.

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Who cares what the outoing VP says.

Why no comment from Biden?

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"some 30 detainees who were released from Guantamano ended up back on the battlefield again"

They should never have been released.

I would not make that statement without names and stories. I guess Dick's word is good enough for you?

Anyway, waterboarding is really effective. My record for getting a man to swear to almighty God that he was born with three testicles is ten minutes 15 seconds. They will say anything you want eventually. That is the problem.

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Next week DC will say that he never said what they have on tape. This man knows no bounds, he lies so much we can not tell what is the truth.

Soon he will be just known as FORMER and the nightmare that he and his NO BID CONTRACT friends will be gone.

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as long as "Waterboarding" is done in a scientific way -I see no ploblem with it. Many of the top college frats still practice this dark art.

But we should start right at the top: Financial CEOs (what did they know and when did they know it? -tell us the truth!!) Al Gore + Clintons GM and UAW Pelosi + Franks (why are you so dumb)

Waterboarding would be therapy for some it seems.

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still don't get many of you. I don't like the idea this type of torture even exists, but still how do you get necessary info from your enemy?

If you are going to take up arms against someone, you should bear in mind you could die or worse, get captured.

If there is an alternative, I am sure its been tried and waterboarding was the last idea.

No, I don't like dick Cheney, never did, but waterboarding was not invented by him, its been used like the man said, WWII.

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Skip,

Most pro's from the US army, and people probably with first hand knowledge of torture, say the use of it isn't a very good idea, as most people who recieve it wil say anything their torturers want them too, and may even just babble like a mountain stream about anything.

I repeat - the Angler must be tried before he snuffs it with either another heart attack, or extreme old age. Waterboard the bastard now, since by it's own definition it's OK to do this that is...

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Dirty Dicks Water Boards for kids on sale soon from Haliburton/ Walmart. With each water board sold, comes a free DVD of "President Bush under fire". The Size 10 vs the president. The first US president to actually come under any type of ordinance ever.

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cheney's pardon has been signed. Otherwise, there's no way he'd talk with this much arrogance.

Truly a disgrace to the office of the vice-president.

Taka

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skipthesong - No, I don't like dick Cheney, never did, but waterboarding was not invented by him, its been used like the man said, WWII.

Just because it's been used since WWII doesn't make it right. Why not use some of those Japanese torture techniques that were used during WWII.

Just because it was used since WWII doesn't make it humane. It just means that torturers like using it. dick cheney is a torturer by proxy. < :-)

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Perpetual imprisonment: Until the "War on Terror" is over, it seems these detainees will be imprisoned indefinately.

So when is the "War on Terror" over? -Not a good time to be a terrorist.

Waterboarding is only the first step it seems. You know if foreigners didn't lie in the first place -you wouldn't need to waterboarded -it's their own fault. Liars must be waterboarded!

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" Liars must be waterboarded!"

That's what I'm saying. Let's get the whole bush regime in there for tort...sorry, water-boarding, to find out what they knew and when. The state of the US after 8 years of Bush Co demands it.

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So it sounds like Cheney supports waterboarding for terrorists, and the radical left supports waterboarding for US elected leaders.

Seems about right.

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SuperLib if it's not torture, I don't see the problem.

100,000s dead because of their lies.

Sounds like a waterboarding moment to me. < :-)

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Hmm, super - does everyone disagreeing with you become the ubiquitous "radical left"?

Heh....I support water-boarding for cheney because he his evil-self supports it, and of course, I'd like to know what he knows and when he knew it...

...and I'd even run the risk of the information being deformed by the torture, again, because cheney his evil-self clearly ignores the advice of four-star US generals in supporting torture.

Cleary the head-bangers on the radical right remain without qualms when discussing torturing suspects.

Heh, and these people wonder why they get laughed down from their high-horse when chirping about "liberating" Iraq from a brutal dictator...

LOL ;D

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Madverts: I support water-boarding for cheney

I can't say I support waterboarding for anyone. I guess we'll just have to live with our differences.

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I believe that Obama has promised to close Gitmo which would be a good thing. Get on with the tribunals and figure out which of these guys are guilty and dangerous and which ones were merely caught up in the action. Those who don't pose a threat get repatriated and those who do get executed and close this indefinite detention center that's a blight on the US. As for Cheney his reign of error is almost over so let him flap his gums.

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They will say anything you want eventually. That is the problem.

the sad truth. torture as a reliable interrogation method has been widely discredited. there has very very rarely been any useful or truthful information obtained by torture. the people who greenlight it simply don't care

http://www.newsweek.com/id/34175

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In America, just about everyone has seen an interrogation on television and in movies and they think they understand it. It seems so simple and it’s wrapped up in a 30-minute episode. And that, honestly, has influenced sometimes some very senior policymakers in that they think they get it, they understand it.

an interesting quote from the above article, a veteran Air Force interrogator with Iraq experience.

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I believe that Obama has promised to close Gitmo which would be a good thing.

I agree. He said he'd close it when he took office but it looks like it will take some time to sort everything out.

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"I can't say I support waterboarding for anyone."

I hear you mate. But for cheney, who himself even ordains it, I'll make the exception.

If that's a double-standard then I'm proud.

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Maybe Cheney would like an all expense paid vacation to check it out? If McCain says waterboarding is torture who is Cheney to disagree?

Torture is torture and should not be used by any country no matter what the result is. The ends do not justify the means.

Incarceration without criminal proceedings are uncivilized. Due process and human rights either apply to all of us or they can be taken away from any of us.

The moral repugnancy of the Bush administration is going to be a tough one to live down. The frightening thing is that neither Tweedle Dum or Tweedle Dee seem to understand that they have done wrong.

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I propose a compromise: Some want the place closed, others think there is no problem with it.

I say we take the prisoners out but leave the decor exactly as it is and call it "The george w bush/dick cheney Freedom.inc Center," make it home to the bush library and offer tours to the public with computer simulations of what was done there, written statements from former inhabitants and guards and maybe a few mannequins that the kids can waterboard themselves. Fun for the whole family.

That way, both sides get what they want. Those against what Gitmo stands for, get the prisoners out and given the right of Habeus Corpus. Those with no problem with the place get a memorial to their dear leader and his chief handler. If they don't mind it being put into practice, they should have no problem with it being memorialized and made available to the public.

There...Problem fixed.

Taka

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"cheney's pardon has been signed"

No pardon necessary.

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Madverts: I hear you mate. But for cheney, who himself even ordains it, I'll make the exception. If that's a double-standard then I'm proud.

Then you're really no different from Cheney. You might think you're angry enough at Cheney to allow it, but considering waterboarding is done against suspected terrorists I think we can find enough people who are just as angry at terrorists, or even more angry if they've lost loved ones, who would support waterboarding.

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considering waterboarding is done against suspected terrorists I think we can find enough people who are just as angry at terrorists

They're suspected terrorists, SuperLib. Innocent until proven guilty, and all that. We know who Cheney is, no mistake.

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Taka -

Good idea.

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taka, I have one up on you. How about we house these detainees at your house, you take care of them, and you tell them how great tolerance is and make sure you let them know you have a friend or two is a Jew and that you daughter is free marry who she wants to and that you allow your wife to drive, go out and be with friends who happen to be male and that you support gay marriage and that there is nothing wrong with people being agnostic and that you could careless whether or not your wife/girlfriend was not a virgin when you met.

Oh, an now as we know that Japan, being forced to do so, For those going to gitmo, since they are not prisoners, I'll accept as it brings me closer to my mother' homeland and at least smell the air that was stolen by Castro and the best thing of all I'll be able to disagree with him there as he won't be able to touch me.

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I like skipthesong's idea.

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Sarge --

No pardon necessary.

The only reason a pardon may not be necessary is if the next administration decides, for political reasons. not to prosecute. Waterboarding is a crime under both US law and the international law of war. The United States has prosecuted and convicted members of its own armed forces and members of the Japanese army for waterboarding. Cheney has acknowledged that he took part in making decisions that resulted in people being waterboarded. Therefore, under US law (I won't bother to cite the specific section of the federal criminal code) he is subject to prosecution for conspiracy to commit a federal crime.

For those who think waterboarding works to obtain useful information, it should be remembered that it was part of the SERE program developed by the US military to teach US armed forces what to expect if captured, and it was based on the most successful techniques used by the North Koreans and Chinese to obtain false confessions from US military members during the Korean War.

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Thank-you Cleo.

Superlib supports invading other people's countries to stop torture, but defends his own countries' use of it. Go figure.

It's like the death penalty - I know at what times it's reasonable to make an exception....and live with the admitted double-standard.

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cleo: They're suspected terrorists, SuperLib. Innocent until proven guilty, and all that. We know who Cheney is, no mistake.

So would you accept torture for known terrorists?

Or shall we use the general opinion that you support torture for people you simply don't like? Either way, you're legitimizing torture, not fighting against it.

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So would you accept torture for known terrorists?

No. I don't even think George W Bush should be tortured. (Given a fair trial then locked away for the rest of his natural days, yes; tortured, no.)

But Cheney himself tells us that waterboarding isn't torture, it's just a 'dunking'. I'd very much like to see him give a public demonstration of how a dunking will make people tell the truth.

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Who was that English copper that tasered himself on TV to show it was harmless?

If Dick Cheney submits himself voluntarily to public water-boarding I promise to reconsider my position.

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