Turning Down the Volume

CIA Director Leon Panetta has given the following message to CIA employees:

Message from the Director: Turning Down the Volume

There is a long tradition in Washington of making political hay out of our business. It predates my service with this great institution, and it will be around long after I’m gone. But the political debates about interrogation reached a new decibel level yesterday when the CIA was accused of misleading Congress.

Let me be clear: It is not our policy or practice to mislead Congress. That is against our laws and our values. As the Agency indicated previously in response to Congressional inquiries, our contemporaneous records from September 2002 indicate that CIA officers briefed truthfully on the interrogation of Abu Zubaydah, describing “the enhanced techniques that had been employed.” Ultimately, it is up to Congress to evaluate all the evidence and reach its own conclusions about what happened.

My advice — indeed, my direction — to you is straightforward: ignore the noise and stay focused on your mission. We have too much work to do to be distracted from our job of protecting this country.

We are an Agency of high integrity, professionalism, and dedication. Our task is to tell it like it is — even if that’s not what people always want to hear. Keep it up. Our national security depends on it.

Bravo, Mr. Panetta! It's about time the agency was defended.

Gingrich: Pelosi Lied

What did Nancy Pelosi know and when did she know it?

ABC News is reporting that in an interview with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Gingrich stated that current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi lied about not being briefed on the enhanced interrogation methods employed on captured terrorist suspects.

In an interview with ABC News Radio’s Marcus Wilson, Gingrich, R-Ga., said Pelosi, D-Calif., “has lied to the House” in claiming that she was never briefed by the CIA about the Bush administration’s use of waterboarding and other harsh tactics.

"I think she has lied to the House, and I think that the House has an absolute obligation to open an inquiry, and I hope there will be a resolution to investigate her. And I think this is a big deal. I don't think the Speaker of the House can lie to the country on national security matters,” Gingrich said.

He continued: "I think this is the most despicable, dishonest and vicious political effort I've seen in my lifetime."

"She is a trivial politician, viciously using partisanship for the narrowist of purposes, and she dishonors the Congress by her behavior."

Pelosi is claiming that she was never briefed, despite being a ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee. CIA documents that surfaced last week refute Pelosi's claims. She knew about the methods, including waterboarding, but did not object. She is currently fighting for her political career and accused the CIA of misleading Congress.

Partisan Democrats in the Congress are pressing for investigations and prosecutions of Bush Administration attorneys over this issue. If seen as a collaborator, the hard Left will demand Pelosi's ouster.

To read the full article, go here.