Well this is good to hear:
http://politicalnews.me/...
Mark Udall, who serves on the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, welcomed recent remarks from Vice President Joe Biden in support of declassifying and making public the committee's report on the CIA's detention and interrogation program — a push Udall has helped lead in the Senate.
"Vice President Biden said it best when he stated, 'the only way you excise the demons' is to acknowledge the wrongs done under the CIA’s detention and interrogation program. I applaud his honesty and appreciation of the importance of 'coming clean' in order to move beyond the mistakes of the past," Udall said. "I recently urged the Obama administration to acknowledge and correct the false public record about the CIA's detention and interrogation program and to lead in instituting the necessary reforms to ensure that such a program is never established again.
"As a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, I know the public record is false and that Congress and the American people have been misled on the effectiveness of this brutal, wrongheaded program. The Senate Intelligence Committee spent more than three years studying the CIA's detention and interrogation program, and produced a 6,000-page report, based on a review of over six million pages of CIA documents and other records. In December, I voted with a majority of my colleagues on the committee to report out the study, and to send it to the CIA for its review and comments. I hope the vice president will help the White House and the CIA understand the importance of engaging with the committee on the report, supporting its declassification and coming clean with the American people." - Political News, 5/1/13
This is big news for Americans and Udall:
http://www.markudall.senate.gov/...
Udall led the push during CIA Director John Brennan's confirmation hearing in pressing the then-nominee to commit to declassifying the committee's report and correcting inaccurate information in the public record on the effectiveness of the CIA's use of enhanced interrogation techniques and detention measures. He called Brennan's Senate confirmation last month "only the beginning" of his efforts to ensure that the agency corrects the record on the Bush administration's detention and interrogation program and declassifies the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence's more than 6,000-page report on the program.
Udall also was part of the bipartisan group of senators who successfully pushed the White House to provide access to the Department of Justice opinions outlining the legal basis for the targeted killing of U.S. citizens using drones. - markudall.senate.gov, 4/30/13
Udall also pointed out a very unnerving fact about the report:
http://thehill.com/...
Senator Mark Udall (D-Colo.), a member of the Intelligence Committee, has said that the study also shows that the CIA mislead Congress and high-level officials in the Bush administration regarding the effectiveness of the CIA torture program. In short, those directly involved with the program and who continue to champion it have a lot to lose — personally and professionally — from the study’s release.
Even so, Vice President Biden has joined a growing bipartisan chorus that believes the country will actually have a lot to gain from public release of the intelligence committee’s study. As Senator McCain has said, “It is my hope that we can reach a consensus in this country that we will never again engage in these horrific abuses, and that the mere suggestion of doing so should be ruled out of our political discourse, regardless of which party holds power. It is therefore my hope that [the Intelligence] Committee will take whatever steps necessary to finalize and declassify this report, so that all Americans can see the record for themselves, which I believe will finally close this painful chapter for our country.”
The Obama administration should to follow the vice president’s lead and work constructively with the Intelligence Committee to declassify and publicly release the report. They should also stand with Senator Feinstein, who has committed to seeking another Intelligence Committee vote on whether to declassify the study. Senators on that committee owe it to the American people to stand with Senator McCain and other leaders on the torture issue and vote to declassify the study. - The Hill, 4/30/13
Here's a little background on Biden's statement:
http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/...
Senator John McCain brought up torture with Vice President Joe Biden this weekend in a candid conversation about U.S. policy at the Sedona Forum 2013.
“We should expose those abuses of human rights committed by the United States, hold people responsible, and make sure that this kind of thing never happen again,” McCain said.
McCain, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, has been a vocal supporter of the release of the Senate Intelligence Committee’s 6,000-page report on post-9/11 CIA interrogation and detention program.
And the Vice President agreed with him—joining other national security experts who have called for the release of the report. “I think the only way you exorcise the demons is that you acknowledge exactly what happened straightforward,“ Biden said.
This report—based on three years of research, including a review of 6 million pages of official records—remains classified and is currently with the Obama administration for review. Those who have read the report say that it shows the CIA torture program was much more widespread and cruel than we thought, and much less effective at gathering actionable intelligence than torture proponents claim. Now, the review process is being delayed. - Human Rights First, 4/30/13
Biden's statement, which you can watch in the video above, has received praise from human rights organizations:
http://www.cvt.org/...
“We highly commend Vice President Biden for standing with Senator John McCain to call for the public release of the Senate Intelligence Committee’s extensive report on the CIA’s unlawful, ineffective and misguided torture policies of the past. This kind of bipartisan leadership is essential to uncovering the truth, securing a public accounting of the facts and making certain the U.S. government does not return to official policies of torture and cruel treatment.
“We now hope the Vice President will convey his support for releasing the report to President Obama, CIA Director John Brennan and other senior-level Administration officials responsible for reviewing the report and providing feedback to the Intelligence Committee.
“CVT has stated time and time again the American people are entitled to a complete reporting of the facts, detailing how and why the CIA’s policies of torture and cruel treatment came to be used. Only when all the facts are known can we understand what went wrong and prevent such abuses from happening again in the future.” - The Center For Victims Of Torture, 4/29/13
So this is good news indeed. If you'd like to get more information, please contact Udall's office:
(202) 224-5941
And if you would like to donate to Udall's 2014 campaign, you can do so here:
https://secure.actblue.com/...