[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 13120]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       NOMINATION OF DAWN JOHNSEN

  (Mr. THORNBERRY asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. THORNBERRY. Mr. Speaker, one of the key lessons from the release 
of legal memos analyzing interrogation techniques is the importance of 
the Office of Legal Counsel in the Justice Department. One may agree or 
disagree with the analysis used in the past, but they were quite clear 
and quite specific on what was allowed and what was not, down to the 
number of seconds that each technique could be used.
  The lawyer's opinions were binding. If they had prohibited a 
technique, for example, that lowered a terrorist suspect's self-esteem, 
then that opinion would be binding too.
  The importance of this position in our government is highlighted by 
the controversial nomination that President Obama has made for this 
position. The opinions of Professor Dawn Johnsen that she has expressed 
in the past, and her reluctance to provide clear answers today, call 
into question her opinions and whether they could be the basis upon 
which our national security professionals could do their job.
  Our colleagues in the other body should be very cautious when 
considering this nomination when so much is at stake.

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