Obama said he was not ruling out prosecuting Bush administration for wiretapping
and "torture." However, he did emphasis "looking forward," which translates to
me that he probably won't do anything. And why would he? Why spend political
capital on such a heated issue and on actions taking during a very tense time in
our history? For what? So the liberal blogosphere can get their revenge? Pfft.
I have a new mantra when it comes harsh interrogation techniques that I've
got from my Democratic friends: Harsh interrogations techniques should rare,
safe and legal. Sound familiar? And if you don't see the moral gray areas when
it comes to harsh interrogation techniques than you are just dogmatic.
Here is the partial transcript of the interview:
PRESIDENT-ELECT BARACK OBAMA: "We're still evaluating how
we're going to approach the whole issue of interrogations, detentions,
and so forth. And obviously we're going to look at past practices. And
I don't believe that anybody is above the law. On the other hand, I
also have a belief that we need to look forward as opposed to looking
backwards. And part of my job is to make sure that for example at
the CIA, you've got extraordinarily talented people who are working
very hard to keep Americans safe. I don't want them to suddenly feel
like they've got to spend all their time looking over their shoulders
and lawyering up.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: "So no 9/11 Commission with
independent seeking of power?"OBAMA: "Well we have not made any final decisions but my instinct
is for us to focus on how do we make sure that moving forward, we are
doing the right thing. That doesn't mean that if somebody has blatantly
broken the law, that they are above the law. But my orientation's going
to be to move forward," Obama said.
STEPHANOPOULOS: "So let me just press that one more time. You're
not ruling out prosecution, but will you tell your Justice Department to
investigate these cases and follow the evidence where it leads?"
OBAMA: What I -- I think my general view when it comes to my
attorney general is that he's the people's lawyer. Eric Holder's been
nominated. His job is to uphold the Constitution and look after the
interests of the American people. Not be swayed by my day-to-day
politics. So ultimately, he's going to be making some calls. But my
general belief is that when it comes to national security, what we
have to focus on is getting things right in the future as opposed to
looking at what we got wrong in the past."