Rice stumbles when asked about torture by fourth-grader
Published: May 4, 2009
Updated 6 months ago
Asked by a fourth grader about the Bush administration’s torture techniques, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice appeared to stumble this weekend, repeating the same phrase three times.
After taking heat last week for telling Stanford University students that waterboarding was legal “by definition if it was authorized by the president,” Rice took questions from a bit younger students at a Washington school.
Rice spoke at the Jewish Primary Day School of the Nation’s Capital, speaking about her “love of Israel,” according to The Washington Post. She then took questions — and an enterprising fourth grader from Bethesda, Maryland posed a whopper.
Paraphrased, the question was: What did Rice think about the things President Obama’s administration was saying about the methods the Bush administration had used to get information from detainees?
Rice said she was reluctant to criticize Obama, and then delivered her answer.
“Let me just say that President Bush was very clear that he wanted to do everything he could to protect the country. After September 11, we wanted to protect the country,” Rice remarked. “But he was also very clear that we would do nothing, nothing, that was against the law or against our obligations internationally. So the president was only willing to authorize policies that were legal in order to protect the country.”
“I hope you understand that it was a very difficult time,” she added. “We were all so terrified of another attack on the country. September 11 was the worst day of my life in government, watching 3,000 Americans die. . . . Even under those most difficult circumstances, the president was not prepared to do something illegal, and I hope people understand that we were trying to protect the country.”
The student’s mother also said her son had effectively been censored by school officials, who’d pressed him not to use the word torture (the questions were screened in advance).
His original question, she said, was: “If you would work for Obama’s administration, would you push for torture?”
“They wanted him to soften it and take out the word ‘torture.’ But the essence of it was the same,” Lerner quipped.
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um…
rice was the
NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR during 9/11
so of course she was fired. what? she was promoted to
SECRETARY OF STATE (are you fucking kidding me?).
the iraq war had “FAULTY INTELLIGENCE” (no weapons of mass destruction)
so the cia director was surely fired and sent off to live
the rest of his life in shame, of course.
george tenet, the cia director was given THE MEDAL OF FREEDOM
(are you fucking kidding me?).
and bush wonders why he’s hated.
p.s. republicans are no longer allowed to use the words:
“freedom,” “patriot,” or the american flag. their lies
have sullied the most sacred places of america.
bush co. used the american flag like used car dealers
slumming some cheap deal.
p.p.s. my apologies to used car dealers.
Ahhhh.. right-wing doublespeak at its best!
“We would never do anything illegal, and all the President has to do is authorize it and it is no longer illegal.. but we didn’t do anything illegal.. oh, and the President authorized what was done, so it was legal”
Didn’t violate any international agreements? Uh.. because.. the President authorized torture making it not illegal so it wasn’t torture then, so we didn’t violate international agreements?
and it takes a 4th grader to make her spin spin spin like a Maytag.
Americans are simply too stupid to survive. They are incapable of engaging their brains and applying reason to what someone says, they take “officials” at their word, even when they are on tape doing what they now say they never did. …. don’t believe your own lying eyes, believe what the guy with an agenda is telling you.
What sort of country must screen and censor children before allowing them to speak to their paid servants?
This certainly ain’t the “America” I was sold.
Why is this war criminal still free?
Because war criminal messiah Obama is protecting war criminal parasite Rice and all the other war criminal parasites of the Bush Crime Family and their D and R parasite accomplices in congress.
Hmm
The network that does the Round Table(this sound British),,,had this woman named Nooman with other members of the media talking about the topic of torture..
This Nooman lady thinks we should just forget about the torture and move on…
Something about this GREAT NATION of ours should just move on and forget about the torture,,,
I think the words GREAT NATION and TORTURE don’t go together…
But it appears just about every Media is calling this torture..
Along with many national and International reports and investigations calling this torture..
It appears everybody agrees on what this was,, TORTURE.
What part of Torture being ILLEGAL do Obama and Holder not understand?
Are Obama and Holder saying the people that authorized,legalized and administrated torture are above the law?
I think in the beginning they were clinging to the excuse, that this wasn’t torture,,
But we have the majority now calling this torture…
So now they will either adhere to National and International law,,
Or they will be charged with aiding and abetting war criminals..
I think there stall game is up!
So Bush’s National Security Advisory and subsequent Secretary of State was dumber than a fourth grader. Figures.
Rice stumbles when asked anything by anyone.
Supposed President George bush had to have Cheney come along hold his hand when asked questions by Congress.
Thank God for fourth-graders! Maybe Rice’s next stop will be a nursery.
As a Stanford graduate I’m especially ashamed of Rice.
The failure to impeach Bush and Cheney was a devastating blow to the U.S. Constitution, American ideals, and the rule of law.
A failure to fully investigate and prosecute all those responsible for torture and other war crimes, including Rice, would be even more devastating.
We must keep grassroots pressure on law enforcement, Congress, and the Obama administration to follow the evidence wherever it leads, and fully prosecute the war criminals in our midst.
We must encourage other nations to speak their truth and help prosecute our war criminals.
My progressive views are expressed in “The Bush League of Nations: The Coalition of the Unwilling, the Bullied and the Bribed – the GOP’s War on Iraq and America,” by James A. Swanson (2008, published by CreateSpace Publishing, 448 pages).
You can now download the entire $25.95 book for FREE at http://www.bushleagueofnations.com.
I ask for nothing in return, except that you consider using this free resource to help transform and build America.
Jim Swanson, Los Altos, CA
[Activist, author, entrepreneur, business executive, Peace Corps volunteer, MIT graduate, Stanford University JD/MBA]
“The Bush League of Nations” [for FREE download of entire $25.95 book]
Rice had already said if the President does it, it is by definition not illegal. Now she said the President would do nothing against the law.
That second statement cannot possibly be false, given her previous statement.
” Even under those most difficult circumstances, the president was not prepared to do something illegal….” So what are we to do when the President IS PREPARED to do something illegal, like waterboarding a human being 183 times in a single month? After the twenty-fifth, fiftieth, or one hundredth time, WHAT WAS THE POINT, other than inflicting intentional duress of life upon another human being? I dare say that if I waterboarded a dog, cat, or any other land-dwelling animal one hundred and eighty three times in less than a month and the county found out about it I would be subject to serious fine and incarceration almost anywhere in America. So, how is it that animals appear to often have more rights, apparently even in the Supreme Court (recent ruling where some humans do “not have a right not to be tortured”) in America than humans? Is THIS progress? Or is someone longing to watch another human burn at the stake just to examine the difference between life and death again?
Out of the mouths of babes … a babe who flusters CondiLIAR … give that kid a medal!!
I hope CondiLIAR’s not too upset that she can’t take her Salvatore Ferregamos to prison with her.