Cheney wrong on interrogation inquiry facts, Obama official says

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Source: CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Former Vice President Dick Cheney had his facts wrong when he blasted Attorney General Eric Holder last week for launching an investigation into past CIA interrogation techniques, an administration official asserted Monday.

Holder’s decision to review waterboarding and other enhanced interrogation techniques was politically motivated, Cheney claimed in remarks broadcast on FOX News Sunday. Cheney made clear in the interview, conducted last Friday, that he believes President Barack Obama directed Holder to launch the review in response to pressure from left-wing Democrats.

But the administration official, who asked not to be identified, said, “The attorney general made a determination independently, based on the facts and the law.”

The official also objected to Cheney’s statement that “the president is the chief law enforcement officer in the land.”

“That’s not true,” the official replied. “It’s the attorney general.”


Read more: http://cnnwire.blogs.cnn.com/2009/08/31/cheney-wrong-on-interrogation-inquiry-facts-obama-official-says/