|
 |
 |
|
Key Republican wants more answers on Christmas bomber
Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) is calling for answers about the status of the Obama administration’s new interrogation unit amid growing concerns about the way the Christmas Day bombing suspect was questioned by authorities.
Wolf, the ranking Republican on the appropriations subcommittee that funds key counterterrorism programs, sent a letter to National Security Adviser Gen. James Jones after a Monday meeting he had with interagency leaders of the High-Value Detainee Interrogation Group (HIG) that apparently left him with more questions than answers.
In the letter, Wolf urged Jones to clearly delineate the administration’s interrogation policies and HIG’s role in it and ensure that all intelligence agencies understand their operational roles. He also asked Jones to ensure that all Congressional “entities and committees” are fully briefed on what the policy is and how it will be carried out.
“There has been considerable confusion among agencies as to what their role was, what their role should have been, whether the HIG should have been involved, whether the HIG is intended to operate inside the United States, and even whether the HIG exists,” Wolf wrote.
“There also seems to be a surprising number of individuals and entities that were never consulted as to how the interrogation should have been handled. There is clearly an urgent need for action and clarification to ensure that future interrogations are conducted properly and effectively,” he continued.
The White House press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Obama administration in August announced the creation of HIG, a new interagency squad for interrogating the highest-value terrorism detainees.
The group is housed at the FBI and reports to the National Security Council, not the attorney general and director of national security. The group, Obama said at the time, would make a case-by-case decision on whether to Mirandize detainees.
In a hearing earlier this month Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair suggested that Abdulmutallab should have been treated as a high-value terror suspect when the plane landed, which would have triggered questioning by special interrogators rather than civilian law officers.
“The FBI agent in charge at the scene,” in consultation with the Justice Department, made the decision to read Abdulmutallab his Miranda rights, Blair said at the time. Since then, media reports said CIA officials were also consulted about Abdulmutallab’s 50-minute interrogation and subsequent decision to read him his Miranda rights, after which he declined to answer any more questions.
Republicans and a growing number of Democrats are questioning the intelligence decisions Christmas Day and the administration’s overall detainee policies.
Most Viewed RSS Feed »
