Re Rizzo (Bob @17 and EW @19) – Doc 40 says there’s a draft memo by CIA OGC on 12/23/2002 re the disposition of the AZ tapes. That’s Rizzo, right? or are we talking about John Fredman here?

It wouldn’t be Fredman since he was General Counsel over at the CIA’s CTC (CounterTerrorism Center) and not at the CIA’s OGC.

Key official in Guantanamo closure plan resigns

“Phillip Carter, who was appointed deputy assistant secretary of defense for detainee policy in April, said in a brief telephone interview that he was leaving for “personal and family reasons” and not because of any policy differences with the administration. He tendered his resignation Friday, Pentagon officials said”

Link.

Oh, I’m sure it had nothing whatsoever to do with any policy differences or anything else like that.

Re the 12/3/2002 Doc 8 cable from CIA HQ to the field, “discussing the destruction of videotapes and other classified material at a field facility”, are these the same videotapes? What is the other destroyed classified material? Again, the Agency says it was prepared to release this 2pg cable “in part,” but Durham intervened claiming exemption b(7). It certainly looks as if this refers to an earlier destruction of videotapes, which had been queried in late Nov 2002, as noted by WO above.

Of interest, the 7/28/05 email from a CIA atty to his client regarding the DNI’s position re “the destruction of the videotapes”. At the time, the Dir. of National Intelligence was John Negroponte (Doc #27). This must be a reference to the letter Negroponte supposedly wrote advising against the destruction of the tapes. The email from the CIA atty would be very interesting to read, and demonstrates internal deliberation on Negroponte’s warning. I think Spencer reported on this, too, back then. In all, as is consensus here, a tremendous record of conspiracy and cover-up by CIA. But they are above the law, n’est pas? Can anyone ever really prove otherwise?

Having read the whole Vaughn release, one is struck by the concern re the videos as early as April 2002. By September 2002, the “field” wants the video (or some of them?) destroyed. (Mitchell and/or Jessen getting quaky feet.) There is a formal request for destruction on 12/20/2002 (doc 42). HQ wants a “random review”. The question of what would make the tapes “an official record” occurs in early 2003. There are various discussions on destruction of tapes, including discussions with “groups of interest” re disposition of the tapes, and also, as noted above, by July 2005, with the DNI.

I see all this is in the great ACLU timeline, noted by WO above.

Re Rizzo (Bob @17 and EW @19) – Doc 40 says there’s a draft memo by CIA OGC on 12/23/2002 re the disposition of the AZ tapes. That’s Rizzo, right? or are we talking about John Fredman here?

I’d note, and have mentioned it before, that when Fredman was at that 10/2/2002 Gitmo “Counter Strategy Meeting”, for which we have the minutes, the following came up re the question of videotapes, and until we see some of these docs is the closest we have to a contemporary insiders view of the issue circa late 2002 (Becker is Dave Becker of DIA, LEA is “law enforcement agency, and basically stands for FBI, Fredman is John Fredman, then chief counsel to the CIA’s counter-terrorism center:

– At this point a discussion about whether or not to video tape the aggressive sessions, or interrogations at all ensued.

Becker: Videotapes are subject to too much scrutiny in court. We don’t want the LEA people in aggressive sessions anyway.

LTC Beaver: LEA choice not to participate in these types of interrogations is more ethical and moral as opposed to legal.

Fredman: The videotaping of even totally legal techniques will look “ugly”.

Becker: (Agreed)

Superlative work, EW, WO, and all! Special thanks to ACLU!

http://documents.nytimes.com/justice-department-communication-on-interrogation-opinions#p=7 (7th/last page)

I mentioned that I had heard there as a video of an early session that would come out eventually