McCain Is Putting All our Heads In The Guillotine

Senator John McCain is trying to remove the option of torture from the arsenal of the American People in its war with the Islamist fanatics. He says that it leads to bad intelligence because the prisoner will say anything to make the pain stop.

Story Link McCain vows to add torture ban to all major Senate legislation

Speaking from the Senate floor, McCain said, "If necessary - and I sincerely hope it is not - I and the co-sponsors of this amendment will seek to add it to every piece of important legislation voted on in the Senate until the will of a substantial bipartisan majority in both houses of Congress prevails. Let no one doubt our determination." The ban would establish the Army Field Manual as the guiding authority in interrogations and prohibit "cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment" of prisoners. ''Subjecting prisoners to abuse leads to bad intelligence, because under torture a detainee will tell his interrogator anything to make the pain stop,'' McCain said

Poor John, he does not understand. We are not Communist schmucks out to torture prisoners for revenge and fun. Our goal is to obtain data that can be used to prevent terror attacks. It is the threat of pain, discomfort, or death that prompts the terrorist to answer questions and carry on a conversation in the first place. The actual pain is administered if he lies. He will stick to the truth to avoid pain.

Sosphisticated interrogation techniques are capable of determining if he is lying by comparing what he is saying to what he has said and to other verified data. No human mind can construct, and keep track of a fabric of lies over a period of weeks or months. If the terrorist can be persuaded to talk, the truth can be ferreted out. And we will be able to prevent terrorist attacks. but the terrorist must always know that if we need to, we have the option of torture.

If McCain is successful, he will be putting us in deeper danger. It is the equivalent of baring all our throats to Al Quaeda.

He should be ashamed of himself.

President Bush should veto any legislation with this dangerous provision attached to it.