Federal Government Policy and Business

Breaking Down Gina Haspel's Tense Confirmation Hearing

Government Executive: Gina Haspel’s confirmation hearing for CIA director was never going to be a breeze. The CIA veteran oversaw the torture of a suspected al-Qaeda member at a “black site” in Thailand in 2002 and was later involved in the destruction of tapes documenting the interrogations. Lawmakers honed in on that time Wednesday, repeatedly asking Haspel about her involvement in the program, the morality of the techniques, and whether she would allow the agency to resume the use of such methods in the future.

Haspel conceded that the agency learned “tough lessons” from the use of harsh detention and interrogation tactics and, over the course of more than two hours, continually told lawmakers that she would not bring back the program if confirmed.

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