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Archive for April, 2009

Responding to a deadline in a court case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, the Obama administration released four Justice Department memos providing a legal rationale for techniques the ACLU and other critics likened to torture — and that Obama has since ended by executive order.

Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder said CIA interrogators would not be held accountable because their actions had been sanctioned by the Justice Department. Holder also said the government would defend them against any lawsuits and seek to indemnify them against monetary judgments.

This is a time for reflection, not retribution,” Obama said in a statement. “We have been through a dark and painful chapter in our history. But at a time of great challenges and disturbing disunity, nothing will be gained by spending our time and energy laying blame for the past.”

ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero criticized the decision not to prosecute those who authorized and conducted the interrogations. “There can be no more excuses for putting off criminal investigations of officials who … broke the law,” he said.

A USA TODAY/Gallup Poll in late January found that nearly two-thirds of Americans favored investigations into the torture allegations. Four in 10 wanted criminal probes.