Legal Commentary

Hayden Continues To Rely On Yoo/Addington/Rizzo

By Big Tent Democrat

The [warrantless surveillance] program was lawful . . . The reflexive judgments to the contrary seem hasty at best. There has been much controversy about the lawfulness of the program. Here I must point out that agency lawyers — career attorneys with deep expertise in the law, privacy and intelligence — assisted their professional Justice Department counterparts in their review of the program but remained comfortable throughout with the lawfulness of all aspects of the surveillance effort.- Michael Hayden

What amazes me about Michael Hayden, the former Bush Administration CIA and NSA Director, is not that he defends his and the Bush Administration actions. You would expect that. But that he does it so poorly does seem strange.

To cite the legal judgments of lawyers who approved torture - people like John Yoo, David Addington and John Rizzo, defies belief. But there you have it. I quoted from his Hayden's latest op-ed and it remains the same style of argument - trust my word. Now this argument worked to convince Joe Klein and the Media for years. A lot of us knew better. and have been proven right. But Hayden lives in a time warp, where nothing regarding the abuses of the Bush Administration lawyers has been revealed. A world where Joe Klein was proven a fool. We're past that now I hope.

Speaking for me only

Full post as published by TalkLeft on July 27, 2009 (boomark / email).