Former CIA Director: 'Obama admnistration taking wrong paths in dealing with terrorism' :: Political News and commentaries

« Must read: Class War (How public servants became our masters | Main | Senator Olympia Snow rejects reconciliation in talks with Democrats »

January 31, 2010

Former CIA Director: 'Obama admnistration taking wrong paths in dealing with terrorism'

Topics: Political News and commentaries, War on Terror

In his column at the WaPo today, former CIA head Michael Hayden expertly attacks the Obama administration's legalistic approach to the war on terror, and in particular, its handling of the Christmas day jihadist:

[...] We got it wrong in Detroit on Christmas Day. We allowed an enemy combatant the protections of our Constitution before we had adequately interrogated him. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is not "an isolated extremist." He is the tip of the spear of a complex al-Qaeda plot to kill Americans in our homeland.

In the 50 minutes the FBI had to question him, agents reportedly got actionable intelligence. Good. But were there any experts on al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula in the room (other than Abdulmutallab)? Was there anyone intimately familiar with any National Security Agency raw traffic to, from or about the captured terrorist? Did they have a list or photos of suspected recruits?

And ends with this stinging rebuke:

There's a final oddity. In August, the government unveiled the HIG [High Value Detainee Interrogation Group] for questioning al-Qaeda and announced that the FBI would begin questioning CIA officers about the alleged abuses in the 2004 inspector general's report. They are apparently still getting organized for the al-Qaeda interrogations. But the interrogations of CIA personnel are well underway.

As Tom Maguire notes over at JustOneMInute, Eric Holder knows who the enemy is.

Take the time to read Hayden's entire article.

Posted by Richard at January 31, 2010 10:04 AM

Articles Related to Political News and commentaries, War on Terror: