Trump Serious About Torture: Ready to Outdo Bush

Radio Sputnik’s Brian Becker of “Loud and Clear” interviewed Ray yesterday right after reports of an “I-Donald J. Trump-am-tougher-than-George W. Bush-on-torture” draft executive order hit the media.  Actually, the formal title atop the (apparently leaked) draft is:  “Executive Order – Detention and Interrogation of Enemy Combatants.”

https://sputniknews.com/radio_loud_and_clear/201701261050014600-trump-bringing-back-bushs-black-site-torture-program/

(Brian Becker interviews Ray between minute 1:40 and 18:30)

 

Becker recorded the interview at 3:00 yesterday before Trump’s remark to ABC that torture “works” hit the news.  (“Loud and Clear” aired very early this morning Washington time.)  17 minutes gave Ray time enough to fit in a lot of background from memory.  He misspoke saying “Bruce” Ackerman, instead of the Guardian’s Spencer Ackerman, but did connect “Ackerman” to the Guardian.

 

Ray hopes folks will download part three of Ackerman’s four-part unique reporting based on interviews with Senate Intelligence Committee chair Dianne Feinstein’s chief investigator, Daniel Jones.  See:  https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/10/cia-senate-investigation-constitutional-crisis-daniel-jones

 

And so, with “tough guys” Bush and Cheney not held accountable for torture and Obama putty in the hands of John Brennan, the stage is set for a “tougher-even-than” guy – President Trump, heir to that undisciplined bullying and craven timidity, to do what he told us he’d do during the Republican primary debate on February 6, 2016:

 

“I would bring back waterboarding … and a hell of a lot worse than waterboarding.”