Politics

Cheney: George W. Bush Wasn’t Kept In Dark On Enhanced Interrogation, ‘He Approved It’

Al Weaver Reporter
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Former Vice President Dick Cheney said on “Meet The Press” Sunday the idea that President George W. Bush was kept in the dark about the CIA’s enhanced interrogation techniques is a “flat-out lie.” Cheney told host Chuck Todd that Bush “approved” and “authorized it.”

“The notion that we were not identified at the White House about what was going on is not true,” said Cheney. “I sat through a lengthy session in ’04 with the inspector general of the CIA as he reviewed the state of the program at that time. The suggestion, for example, that the president did not know is wrong, it’s a lie and it is not true. We were in fact…”

“How was the president briefed? By the CIA or by you?” asked Todd.

“He with was briefed– I was heavily involved as was, especially, the national security council and Conde [Rice]. The president writes as about it in his own book!” Cheney said.

“Well, three pages in his book he talks about it. You were briefed directly, he was briefed indirectly most of the time. Is that fair to say?” asked the host.

“Thats not fair to say,” Cheney pushed back. “What happened was he and I met every single morning with the director of the CIA, with the national security adviser. Six days a week, we reviewed everything, basically, in the intelligence arena. That’s where we got most of our information, that and the written PDB (President’s Daily Brief).”

“This man knew what we were doing,” Cheney said. “He authorized it. He approved it. The statement by the Senate Democrats, for partisan purposes, that the president didn’t know what was going on is just a flat-out lie. It’s a cheap shot, piece of political business that was not bipartisan, nor was it involved any discussion with the people involved with the program.”

“Why would you even give that credence?” the former VP asked.