General David Petraeus said:
 

that President Obama's decision to close down Gitmo and end harsh interrogation techniques would benefit the United States in the broader war on terror.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/0..._n_207513.html

http://www.rferl.org/content/transcr...s/1738626.html

Sounds to me like any other individual lining up with his boss
 

to keep his job (and Generals are always looking for that next star!!!).

Dem media fodder to shore up Obama's unpopular decisions on both subjects. Dare one say it could even be political?!?!

Doing whatever it takes is a multi-faceted application!!!

BTK

Your comments are pure nonsense.

Read a little about Petraeus and his background. He is not a yes man or a brown noser in any respect. He's a well educated military professional who is above pollitics.

By the way, thanks for the laughs with your Memorial Day thread. You sure blew that one. It's about time for you to start the 4th of July rant now isn't it?

I'm sorry but next, you will be quoting Wikipedia on historical facts.

Yoda

A member of the loyal opposition

Yoda

Clarify another one of your mystifying posts. So you believe that the story and statements made by Petraeus in the two articles are not factual and the statements by Petraeus are made up?

While you are at it, explain the problem you have with Radio Free Europe, which is one of the links to the Petraeus statements. Give us a little history on RFE and why it's apparently somehow like Wikipedia.

Many of us anxiously await another one of your breath taking posts.

We seem to have different interpretations on the RFE interviews.

1. With regards to closing down Gitmo, what the General said was: "With respect to Guantanamo, I think that the closure in a responsible manner, obviously one that is certainly being worked out now by the Department of Justice .......sends an important message to the world, as does the commitment of the United States to observe the Geneva Convention when it comes to the treatment of detainees. " To me, that means he agrees the detainee problem should not be a Department of Defense (DOD) problem, but should be a Department of Justice (USDOJ) problem, and that DOD should not be maintaining any long-term detainee facility. He is all for the Attorney General inheriting the detainee problem and getting it off the DOD plate.

2. With regards to interrogation techniques, what the General said was: "I have long been on record as having testified and also in helping write doctrine for interrogation techniques that are completely in line with the Geneva Convention. And as a division commander in Iraq in the early days, we put out guidance very early on to make sure that our soldiers, in fact, knew that we needed to stay within those guidelines." He never said anything about which interrogation techniques he considered as violating the Geneva Convention, only that the Geneva Convention sets the boundaries for what can and cannot be employed in interrogation. His choice of words was very careful, in that he did not specifically say that water-boarding violated the Geneva Convention, and did not rule out its future use.

The General is a very precise person. One must read the interview without adding any inference or desired language to his answers.

Also, RFE questions would have been submitted prior to the interview, and the General's answers were definitely scripted and vetted prior to broadcast and publication. That is normally what happens when a key administration official finds him/herself in a position for a structured interview or committee testimony. While he may be his own man, he is still a member of the administration (as a DOD officer) and any appearance before any forum - and what his comments may be - are subject to prior approval of his superior (in this case, the Secretary of Defense). Should his vetted answers be contrary to the position of the Secretary of Defense (or higher), the interview would have been canceled. That is how it works.

I won't read the Huffington Post site. I am afraid I will catch IT

Yoda

A member of the loyal opposition

Good golly...George Bush said a number of years ago he wanted to close it down but it was not easy to do ! Convenient memory you have perhaps ???

Have you conveniently forgotten that former VP Dick Cheney has been all over TV, claiming death and destruction if GITMO closes, making it "topic one"? :blahblahblah: Read the interview.

Wow! We have score keepers!!!
 

:jester:

BTK

Not sure what Cheney has to do with my remarks concerning Bush ! I never mentioned Cheney's name...not once. I can cite the quote from the last President of the US saying he wanted it closed if you want but I know you recall it !

Again, what does Cheney have to do with my comment concerning Bush ? I simply stated that the thread premise, if political, is non threatening since the last President said he wanted to close it. But, of course party is the name of the game with you thus your post.

I will try to be clearer in the future...it is BUSH not CHEYNEY !

Almost like romper room reading this forum sometimes. Dont dare say something unless you have a link to Billo,, or Fox News. It just want be so unless it is quoted by them.

Clear your mind must be, if you are to discover the real villains behind this plot.”

Money Out

So, who do you rely on for your historical facts?

Not Wikipedia


Yoda

A member of the loyal opposition