Cheney Ran an "Executive Assassination Ring?"

[Rohirrim]

WTF? Looks like the CIA covering up the waterboarding was actually a deflection from more serious issues.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/0..._n_228864.html

[cutthemdown]

Yeah we talked about this before.

Who cares anyways, I want the CIA to be killing our enemies.

I have no fear that a vice pres will order me murdered by the CIA, or any of you either.

Russia does it also, if CIA plays nice they will lose.

[spdirty]

Why in the hell do you bltch and moan and plss about someone else using a heritage foundation source, completely ignoring the content of what was said in that other thread then you ****ing come back with a damn huffington post source claiming Cheney was in some assassination ring? Dipshlt.

[Rohirrim]

Originally Posted by spdirty

Why in the hell do you bltch and moan and plss about someone else using a heritage foundation source when you ****ing come back with a damn huffington post source claiming Cheney was in some assassination ring? Dipshlt.

The difference with mine, asshat, is that I put a question mark on it. For you illiterate troglodytes out there, that means it is a questionable statement where you read the sources and decide for yourself. To make that point even clearer, I put the "WTF?" Sorry that didn't get through to you. Next time, I'll use pictures. Besides, the other quoted sources are Seymour Hersh and the NY Times. Personally, I would require a lot more evidence before I bought the whole story, but what they have so far is good enough for an congressional investigation, IMHO.

[Rohirrim]

Originally Posted by cutthemdown

Yeah we talked about this before.

Who cares anyways, I want the CIA to be killing our enemies.

I have no fear that a vice pres will order me murdered by the CIA, or any of you either.

Russia does it also, if CIA plays nice they will lose.

How many of our ideals and laws do we violate before we aren't worth a ****?

[barryr]

Originally Posted by spdirty

Why in the hell do you bltch and moan and plss about someone else using a heritage foundation source, completely ignoring the content of what was said in that other thread then you ****ing come back with a damn huffington post source claiming Cheney was in some assassination ring? Dipshlt.

Because any source that says anything they don't like or agree with, the credibility must be attacked. Meanwhile they get crap off known lefty blog sites and believe it as Gospel. Just showing their continual hypocrisy is all.

[cutthemdown]

Originally Posted by Rohirrim

How many of our ideals and laws do we violate before we aren't worth a ****?

Hmm I don't think like that really. I mean the countries ideals have changed over time don't you think? IMO the USA has always been willing to do what it has to to insure American power and safety. I think that ideal outweighs things like the CIA killing someone they deem dangerous to our country.

What ideals did we use when we took land from Indians? What ideals do we use when we abort a baby? a life that will never get a chance?

[Rohirrim]

Originally Posted by cutthemdown

Hmm I don't think like that really. I mean the countries ideals have changed over time don't you think? IMO the USA has always been willing to do what it has to to insure American power and safety. I think that ideal outweighs things like the CIA killing someone they deem dangerous to our country.

What ideals did we use when we took land from Indians? What ideals do we use when we abort a baby? a life that will never get a chance?

I don't think our ideals have changed. I think our leadership has become corrupt. The Declaration was, IMO, a statement of ideals. I don't know if we've ever lived up to them yet, but as long as we keep trying, and keep that goal out there, we're on the right path. What's wrong is when our leaders mouth the words but no longer believe the message. That kind of cynicism will kill us faster than any external enemies. Yes, maybe the CIA does have to take out enemies who are committed to doing us harm, but the idea that the VP of the U.S. might be picking targets makes me highly uncomfortable. That is the crossing of so many lines...

[Smiling Assassin27]

Originally Posted by Rohirrim

How many of our ideals and laws do we violate before we aren't worth a ****?

Ask your President.

[Rohirrim]

Originally Posted by Smiling Assassin27

Ask your President.

Honestly, Bush was such a foul example of bad governance, Obama couldn't come close, not to say I'm a big Obama supporter.

[Rigs11]

Originally Posted by cutthemdown

Yeah we talked about this before.

Who cares anyways, I want the CIA to be killing our enemies.

I have no fear that a vice pres will order me murdered by the CIA, or any of you either.

Russia does it also, if CIA plays nice they will lose.

So if our economic principles are somewhat like russia's were it's bad, but if the CIA's are it's ok?

[Miss I.]

Originally Posted by cutthemdown

Yeah we talked about this before.

Who cares anyways, I want the CIA to be killing our enemies.

I have no fear that a vice pres will order me murdered by the CIA, or any of you either.

Russia does it also, if CIA plays nice they will lose.

Do we really want to set Russia up as our example of how to behave? How well has it worked out for them really? The communist government that engaged in that behavior and much worse (the former USSR occupied countries still have their hate on well and good for the former soviet republic) collapsed. They bankrupted and destroyed their country. The KGB is possibly one of the most vile organizations ever established. I was just in Russia and let me tell you, while I found it fascinating to have the opportunity to vist a country once our sworn and deadly enemy, and the beautiful sites built by the aristocracy and churches quite beautiful, the majority of it's people live in poverty. St. Petersburg is as much known for it's pickpockets as it's tourist and other industries (ship building, etc). Chernobyl (not I went there, but I have read about it) is still a disaster leaching poisons into the soil because a corrupt government didn't give any more of a crap about it's people then did the aristocracy before them. So let me just say, we don't want to be like Russia, it didn't work all that well for them. We can sit in here and b**** and moan and yell about our government and have the freedom to know we won't be destroyed for it. Those people still walk softly through sadly impoverished city streets. And if our CIA becomes like Russia's police or KGB, we are done as any kind of American having any freedom or being an actual citizen and we will be loathed the world over in a way we only think we are now. There is a difference between being a bully and being strong, it's a fine line we have to walk if we want to be really conscientious citizens both at home and of the world.

[mhgaffney]

Check out the latest update on this -- posted at Raw Story.

Don't miss the video interview with Rep Eshoo -- who is calling for a bipartisan investigation.

http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/07/...sination-ring/

[mhgaffney]

It looks like Cheney may have been running his own private death squad.

[cutthemdown]

Originally Posted by Rohirrim

I don't think our ideals have changed. I think our leadership has become corrupt. The Declaration was, IMO, a statement of ideals. I don't know if we've ever lived up to them yet, but as long as we keep trying, and keep that goal out there, we're on the right path. What's wrong is when our leaders mouth the words but no longer believe the message. That kind of cynicism will kill us faster than any external enemies. Yes, maybe the CIA does have to take out enemies who are committed to doing us harm, but the idea that the VP of the U.S. might be picking targets makes me highly uncomfortable. That is the crossing of so many lines...

I don't like Cheney a whole lot either, but if I was President I could see myself saying I don't want to hear about that stuff unless its needed. I'm sure it is dirty business. As far as Miss Ind saying we shouldn't use Russia as our model. IMO that is putting words in my mouth. I said Russia does it, if we don't, then we could end up being the ones having important people we count on murdered. You really can't play nice in the international world of intelligence gathering.

I don't know who it was Cheney ordered killed, if he did it at all, so how can I comment. What happens when you guys find out the people they whacked were bad bad killers of Americans? Or some guy in Somalia responsible for killing our marines? Or some guy who helped out people who bombed the cole? or some big international drug dealer that lives in come country above the law?

Anyone who thinks we haven't been doing things like that for a long long time in naive.

[cutthemdown]

So they are saying know today it was a program targeting Al Queda operatives and leaders. They never actually pulled it off. Seriously you people really have a problem with that?

[TailgateNut]

Originally Posted by cutthemdown

So they are saying know today it was a program targeting Al Queda operatives and leaders. They never actually pulled it off. Seriously you people really have a problem with that?

If that's all it was, no biggie. I suspect there more than meets the ear (eye).

[Doggcow]

Originally Posted by TailgateNut

If that's all it was, no biggie. I suspect there more than meets the ear (eye).

Transformer murder conspiracy!

[gyldenlove]

It is funny how people are all up in arms about how holy the constitution is when it comes to the owning guns or teaching creationism, but when the vice president takes a huge dump all over it, it is just business.

Make up your minds, either you consider the constitution and outdated allegorical philosophical text about how things should be and you have to find actual arguments for why you want things to be that way, or you have to come down hard on people like Cheney who put it in the blender and hit Frappe. This dilly-dallying is so undignified.

[TailgateNut]

Originally Posted by gyldenlove

It is funny how people are all up in arms about how holy the constitution is when it comes to the owning guns or teaching creationism, but when the vice president takes a huge dump all over it, it is just business.

Make up your minds, either you consider the constitution and outdated allegorical philosophical text about how things should be and you have to find actual arguments for why you want things to be that way, or you have to come down hard on people like Cheney who put it in the blender and hit Frappe. This dilly-dallying is so undignified.

It's no different than their interpretation of the Bible. Whatever fits their current agenda.

[Bob]

Originally Posted by Rohirrim

The difference with mine, asshat, is that I put a question mark on it. For you illiterate troglodytes out there, that means it is a questionable statement where you read the sources and decide for yourself. To make that point even clearer, I put the "WTF?" Sorry that didn't get through to you. Next time, I'll use pictures. Besides, the other quoted sources are Seymour Hersh and the NY Times. Personally, I would require a lot more evidence before I bought the whole story, but what they have so far is good enough for an congressional investigation, IMHO.

That's fair -- What do you know about Seymour Hersh? I dont think I would put this stuff beyond the Bush Admin...

[cutthemdown]

Originally Posted by TailgateNut

If that's all it was, no biggie. I suspect there more than meets the ear (eye).

Right I agree. If it was people that didn't deserve it, or elected leaders of other countries then we have a problem. But if it was terrorists then who really cares?

I do think Cheney's name being linked to makes people worry more, because he comes off as cold and evil even to republicans.

[TailgateNut]

Originally Posted by cutthemdown

because he comes off as cold and evil even to republicans.

Comes off as cold and EVIL

He's EVIL personafied! He a modern day Hitler.

[cutthemdown]

Originally Posted by TailgateNut

Comes off as cold and EVIL

He's EVIL personafied! He a modern day Hitler.

You say things every once in awhile just so off base you lose people and they ignore the good points you make.

Hitler, cmon, Cheney never had that much power. Saddam way better example of someone who thought Hitler was the greatest.

[elsid13]

more to the story

Officials: CIA program targeted al-Qaida leaders

By PAMELA HESS, Associated Press Writer Pamela Hess, Associated Press Writer 2 hrs 46 mins ago


WASHINGTON – A secret intelligence program canceled by CIA Director Leon Panetta in June was meant to find and then capture or kill al-Qaida leaders at close range rather than target them with air strikes that risked civilian casualties, government officials with knowledge of the operation said Monday.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the program, said the spy agency's program never got off the ground.

Panetta canceled the effort on June 23 after learning of its existence, its failure to yield results, and the fact that Congress had been unaware of the program since its inception in 2001, according to one official with direct knowledge of the plan.

That official said former President George W. Bush authorized killing al-Qaida leaders shortly after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and that Congress was made aware of that. However, the official said, Panetta also told members of Congress that according to notes that he had been given on the early months of the program, then-Vice President Dick Cheney directed the CIA not to inform Congress of the specifics of the secret program.

Panetta told the committees there was no indication that there was anything illegal or inappropriate about the effort itself, the official said.

CIA directors since 2001 agreed with Cheney's decision not to inform Congress because the highly classified operation, described as "sporadic" and "embryonic," never managed to turn up the intelligence needed to carry out a kill and was not considered a covert operation, according to a former intelligence official. That official also was not authorized to discuss the program and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Congress has a right to know everything the CIA does, but the president can by law limit those told about covert operations to just the top four members of the House and Senate from the two parties and the senior members of the intelligence committees. Democrats on the House intelligence committee are pushing for a legal provision that would require the president to brief both committees in their entirety more often, but the White House has threatened to veto the move.

The Wall Street Journal, anonymously citing former intelligence officials, first reported Monday that the secret program was a plan to kill or capture al-Qaida operatives. The Journal's sources said the plan was an attempt to carry out a presidential finding authorized in 2001 by President George W. Bush.

The Journal said the agency spent money on planning and maybe some training for the highly classified effort, but it never became fully operational.

Most attempts to kill al-Qaida's leaders, believed to be hiding in Pakistan's troubled western border region, use armed drones because it is difficult terrain controlled by sometimes hostile armed tribes. But those strikes have sometimes killed and injured innocent civilians and have caused outrage in Pakistan.

The government official said the CIA effort was meant to avoid such collateral damage.

Panetta revealed the CIA program to the House and Senate Intelligence Committees in emergency briefings he called June 24 and told them he had begun an internal inquiry to determine why Congress — and he — had not been told sooner.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_cia_concealment