When the FBI are the Good Guys

FBI agents who assisted with overseas interrogations of suspected terrorists after Sept. 11 often clashed with their military counterparts and refused to participate in the most aggressive intelligence-gathering methods because they doubted they were legal or effective, a long-awaited Justice Department audit found.

At the same time, the report released Tuesday by Inspector Gen. Glenn A. Fine faults officials at FBI headquarters for failing to provide prompt guidance to agents in the field on what to do if they witnessed interrogations using snarling dogs, sexual ploys and other abusive techniques that violated long-standing FBI policy.

According to a report in yesterday's Los Angeles Times, FBI agents were distraught and concerned about the military's overly aggressive interrogation tactics.  Now I realize that not many of us see the FBI as the bastions of sound criminal justice policy because of an entire history of mistreatment, abuse, illegal wiretapping and all many of questionable surveillance and eavesdropping.   But you have to wonder exactly how far was the military willing to go in conducting illegal interrogations?  We know about some abuses which I will not rehash here.  However I would wager that we do not know about all of them by a long shot.  If so, what does this say about our government?  While the NeoCons have created an unholy mess of foreign policy, I often wonder if they meant to do so...

Imagine the deep and lasting damage to the image of the United States and the U.S. Military's reputation in the world which causes political instability at home?  Maybe the NeoCons are trying to destabilize American politics for years to come -- maybe they did mean to do all of this if the right opportunity arose.  Then 9/11 happened, a horrible tragedy but a perfect opportunity to enact several draconian political measures and the open door to NeoCon's much desired military adventurism.

Imagine running up a huge bill (which is happening) and then you do not have to pay for it when it comes due.

We might have a scorched earth political policy which leads to many messes that the next president -- a Democrat -- has to try and solve.  And because of the extreme and unitary actions of the NeoCons the problems become so intractable that real damage is also done to the Democratic party when a Democratic president tries to solve them.  Then another NeoCon (or worse a religious nut-job NeoCon) swoops in with all kinds of promises and is elected for eight more years of NeoConservative political and governmental realignment.  Sounds far fetched?  Who would imagine a situation in which the FBI is troubled by interrogation techniques?

In the end it is never wise to fight extremism and terrorism with more of the same.  Maybe we should listen to the FBI on this point.