Remember the Academy Award-winning film Zero Dark Thirty? Well, last week news broke that the CIA edited the film’s script to make sure that it didn’t portray the “enhanced interrogation” program in a way that would make the agency look bad.
But Zero Dark Thirty isn’t the only thing the CIA’s trying to edit.
The Senate Intelligence Committee recently completed a 3-year study of the CIA’s post-9/11 detention and interrogation program. Those who have read the study—including Senator Dianne Feinstein, Chair of the Senate intelligence committee—say it shows that brutal torture was much more widespread and cruel than we thought, and much less effective at gathering actionable intelligence than torture proponents claim.
But reports suggest that the CIA is fighting the committee’s findings tooth and nail, and trying to rewrite the study.
We can’t let that happen.
Urge President Obama to direct his administration to cooperate with the Senate Intelligence Committee on its study, and make sure it’s released to the American people.
Until the study is made public, torture proponents will continue to cite secret knowledge to argue that the CIA torture program was safe, lawful, and effective—that it saved lives and led us to criminals like Osama bin Laden.
If made public, the Senate Intelligence Committee’s study could debunk those claims.
As Senator John McCain said, “At a moment when our country is once again debating the efficacy and morality of so-called ‘enhanced interrogation’ practices, this study has the potential to set the record straight once and for all.” I agree.
