[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 54 (Thursday, April 28, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4540-S4541]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        PUBLICATION OF PHOTOGRAPHS OF ABUSE AT ABU GHRAIB PRISON

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, one year ago today, the horrific photos of 
detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib prison shocked the Nation and tarnished 
our reputation as the world's human rights leader. One year later, we 
should be able to assure the world that the detainee abuse scandal has 
been independently and comprehensively investigated and that all those 
involved, from the people who committed abuses

[[Page S4541]]

to the officials who set these policies in motion, have been held 
accountable. Sadly, we cannot give the world this assurance. The 
administration continues to stonewall on the prisoner abuse scandal and 
Congress continues to abdicate its oversight responsibility on this 
issue.
  Those of us in the Congress who strongly believe that oversight and 
accountability are paramount to restoring America's reputation as a 
human rights leader remain stymied in our efforts to learn the truth 
about how this administration's policies trickled down from offices in 
Washington to cellblocks in Abu Ghraib. This Senate refuses to consider 
an independent commission, relying instead on the piecemeal 
investigations conducted by the military, none of which address the 
significant role of the Central Intelligence Agency in interrogations. 
With the completion of each of the Pentagon investigations, the need 
for a comprehensive, independent investigation becomes all the more 
evident.
  I am particularly disturbed by recent press reports about the Army 
Inspector General's investigation into the Abu Ghraib abuse scandal. 
Although the report has not yet been publicly released, the press 
accounts state that Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez has been cleared by the 
Army of all allegations of wrongdoing and likely will not face 
punishment.
  In order to understand why the reported findings of the Army 
Inspector General are troubling, and why an independent investigation 
is necessary, we need only consult the reports of prior investigations. 
The Jones investigation, referring to the Combined Joint Task Force led 
by Lt. Gen. Sanchez, stated, ``Inaction at the CJTF-7 staff level may . 
. . have contributed to the failure to discover and prevent abuses 
before January 2004.'' The Jones report concluded that Lt. Gen. Sanchez 
``failed to ensure proper staff oversight of detention and 
interrogation operations.''
  The Schlesinger investigation is even more critical of Lt. Gen. 
Sanchez's role in the detainee abuse scandal. The Schlesinger panel 
described how Lt. Gen. Sanchez relied upon the interrogation policy 
from Guantanamo Bay to develop interrogation procedures for Iraq. The 
result of this, as the Schlesinger panel correctly states, was that 
``policies approved for use on al Qaeda and Taliban detainees who were 
not afforded the protection of [Enemy Prisoner of War] status under the 
Geneva Conventions now applied to detainees who did fall under the 
Geneva Convention protections.'' The Schlesinger report continued, 
``Despite lacking specific authorization to operate beyond the confines 
of the Geneva Conventions, [Lt. Gen. Sanchez] nonetheless determined it 
was within [his] command discretion to classify, as unlawful 
combatants, individuals captured during [Operation Iraqi Freedom].'' 
The panel also found that Lt. Gen. Sanchez ``was responsible for 
establishing the confused command relationship at the Abu Ghraib 
prison'' and ``the unclear chain of command established by CJTF-7, 
combined with the poor leadership and lack of supervision, contributed 
to the atmosphere at Abu Ghraib that allowed the abuses to take 
place.''
  The findings of the Jones and the Schlesinger investigations 
regarding the decisions of Lt. Gen. Sanchez are troubling on their own. 
Equally troubling is the indication that Lt. Gen. Sanchez gave 
inaccurate testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee. In an 
Armed Services Committee hearing on May 19, 2004, Senator Jack Reed 
asked Lt. Gen. Sanchez if he had approved sleep deprivation, 
intimidation by guard dogs, excessive noise, and inducing fear as 
interrogation methods for use in Abu Ghraib prison. Lt. Gen. Sanchez 
replied that, ``I never approved any of those measures to be used 
within CJTF-7 at any time in the last year.'' His statement is 
seemingly contradicted by a document recently released by the Pentagon 
in response to litigation under the Freedom of Information Act. A 
September 14, 2003, memo from Lt. Gen. Sanchez authorized specific 
interrogation methods for use in Iraq, including the use of military 
working dogs to exploit Arab fear of dogs, the use of sleep management 
and stress positions, and inducing fear through ``yelling, loud music, 
and light control.''
  There has been some speculation in the media about whether Gen. 
Sanchez's actions in Iraq will stand in the way of his promotion and 
fourth star. But involvement in the prisoner abuse scandal is hardly a 
career-ending event in this administration. Alberto Gonzales, the 
central figure in formulating the administration's interrogation and 
detention policies, was promoted to Attorney General. Former Assistant 
Attorney General Jay Bybee, author of the deeply flawed and now-
repudiated ``torture memo,'' received a lifetime appointment to the 
Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Defense Department General 
Counsel William J. Haynes insisted that the Pentagon Working Group use 
the Bybee torture memo, rather than the Geneva Conventions, as the 
legal foundation for interrogation techniques; he has been nominated to 
the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Former CIA Director George 
Tenet authorized the ``extraordinary rendition'' of detainees to 
countries where they were reported to have been tortured; he was 
awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Secretary Rumsfeld 
personally approved objectionable interrogation techniques and admitted 
to hiding detainees from the International Committee of the Red Cross; 
he is one of the few cabinet members asked to remain in the second Bush 
term.
  Allowing senior officials and military officers to avoid 
accountability sets a dangerous precedent. It is time for Congress, 
even this Republican-led Congress, to recognize its constitutional 
obligation to conduct vigorous oversight. We must send a message that 
no one in the chain of command--from an enlisted private stationed in 
Iraq to the Commander-in-Chief--is above the laws of our Nation. Many 
Republicans argue that another investigation will hurt the morale of 
our troops serving overseas. On the contrary, I believe that morale is 
hurt when the only individuals who have been punished for detainee 
abuse are low-ranking soldiers, while those at the highest levels of 
power continue to set policy and act with impunity.
  Chairman Warner recently announced that he will hold an Armed 
Services Committee hearing to examine the adequacy of the various 
Pentagon and military investigations. I commend the chairman for 
announcing this hearing, and hope that the supporters of an independent 
investigation are given the opportunity to testify before the 
committee. In a letter last September, eight retired generals and 
admirals asked President Bush to appoint a prisoner abuse commission 
modeled on the 9/11 Commission. In that letter, the officers stated, 
``internal investigations by their nature . . . suffer from a critical 
lack of independence. Americans have never thought it wise or fair for 
one branch of government to police itself.'' I hope that members of the 
Armed Services Committee will consider these words when they evaluate 
the Pentagon's investigations.
  April 28, 2004, will remain a dark day in American history, but the 
administration's handling of this scandal only adds to our disgrace. 
There will always be scandals and tragedies in a nation's history. What 
makes America special is that we do not hide from these issues; we 
investigate them, learn from our mistakes, and make sure they do not 
happen again. Unfortunately, one year after the disclosure of the Abu 
Ghraib photos, we still have much to learn.

                          ____________________