News Clips - Retired Military Leaders Speak Out Against Torture in South Carolina and Florida

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GUEST: Major General Nash

DATE: January 15, 2008

SHOW: Charleston’s Morning News, 6:00-9:00 am

HOST: Kelly Golden

HOST: Welcome back to another edition of Caroline and Now, I am your host, Kelley Golden, joined with a special guest Retired Major General William Nash. How are you? Welcome

CCN: I am great Kelly.

HOST: Well I am interested because I know you met with 8 presidential candidates from both parties, and of course you know it is a political hotbed here in the Palmetto state ahead of both of Saturday’s primaries.

CN: That’s right. It’s a very exciting time for our country, and here in South Carolina with your responsibilities in helping us select our next two presidential candidates.

HOST: Little bit of background here, Major General Nash has been with Council on Foreign Relations since March of 2001, a veteran of Vietnam, Operation Desert Storm, 34 years in the armed forces of the Army, it goes on and on and on. We’re setting this up for what reason? You are here in the low country not just because it is the political spotlight shining on us but also for personal reasons.

CN: Well the fact is that we are trying to talk to not only the presidential candidates but also the people of the region about the issues concerned with torture, detention policies and various rules associated with the Geneva conventions and the treatment of detainees.

HOST: Now a lot of people might say, and I am pretty brave to be saying this to retired military, but a lot of people would say “hey, torture is a part of war, suck it up.”

CN: Well, it’s really not. From the days of George Washington who gave orders to not retaliate against British misdeeds, to General Petraeus in Iraq today who has made it very clear that those who think we should sanction torture would be wrong. And the fact of the matter is that for a variety of reasons the use of torture is not to the advantage of the United States.

HOST: So what’s the answer I guess then? Some people may say we can’t strong-arm people or that’s a disadvantage to us? What’s the answer then?

CN: Well, the answer is that the legitimate interrogation techniques recognized in the document the Army Field Manual is in fact the standard for all the armed forces, and the commanders in the field are very satisfied with the results they are getting from the authorized sanctioned techniques. But there is a dual standard in our country unfortunately, and the perception of the world towards the US is that we are a nation that tortures and that certainly gets us off the high moral ground that has been a mark of our behavior since the founding of our country.

HOST: Now have you come out at all backing any candidate of course out of the primaries here this coming Saturday of course, here in South Carolina for the GOP, next weekend’s going to be the Democratic primary. Have you backed any candidates on this topic?

CN: Well, no in fact we go exactly the opposite direction. We are a non-partisan organization and we want to talk to all of the candidates and give them our thoughts with respect to the issues because we are trying to influence all of the candidates to have a similar plank, if you will, in their platform with respect to the way Americans treat all people in the world.

HOST: Now I can’t have a retired major general with your background, you are a military consultant for ABC News, I can’t have you on Charleston’s morning news without asking you the possible answer to the war in Iraq. Obviously a huge, huge issue for the upcoming president.

CN: Well, you’re exactly right and I would just say to you that our commanders on the ground understand that as the soldiers behave in accordance with the standards and values of our country in treating non-combatants as well as detainees with dignity and respect is a key essential ingredient to our strategy for success in Iraq. And General Petraeus has been very concerned of some of the trends that have come out in a variety of surveys on the attitudes of the soldiers and sailors, airmen and marines in the country on the issue of torture and he wants to put a stop to the misbehavior. I think the American people need to support our troops in the field in that regard, and I think as I talk to the candidates for President they should make it very clear that they are looking for somebody that can provide clear, consistent value-based guidance to the military commanders that will bring out the very best in the American character.

HOST: Now if you’re just tuning in, you are listening to Charleston’s morning news. We are talking to Major General William Nash. He is retired, he is in the low country, he’s talked to 8 presidential candidates ahead of our weekend primaries here in the Palmetto state. I imagine, feeling the way you feel about all of this you’ve likely followed the Jose Padilla case out of Goose Creek.

CN: Well, we have but again we have tried to address a wide number of issues concerning the treatment of detainees and prisoners.

HOST: Now what about also the story I believe that maybe broke last week about Guantanamo Bay in Cuba?

CN: Well, the fact of the matter is there is great concern about Guantanamo Bay. We’ve made it clear to the candidates that we’ve talked to, again I am a part of a large group that is on this tour, we’ve made it clear that we think the perception of the world towards Guantanamo has resulted in a circumstance where it is much more trouble to the United States than it is worth and we think that closing that would be a good idea for the next president.

HOST: Well, I leave you with any parting words?

CN: Well, I think it is very important to understand that the use of torture against those captured by the armed forces of the United States it’s wrong, it endangers our soldiers, it lessens the view of the rest of the world of the United States, and by the way it doesn’t work very well. And all those put together require the next president make very clear a value-based guidance process.