DOJ Lawyer Who Wrote Interrogation Opinions Is Renominated
The Justice Department lawyer who wrote still-secret legal opinions authorizing harsh interrogation techniques has been renominated to head the Office of Legal Counsel.
Steven Bradbury got the nod even though Senate Democrats had urged the administration to withdraw his name late last year, the New York Times reports. He reportedly wrote legal opinions in 2005 authorizing harsh techniques, including simulating drowning through waterboarding and stripping prisoners naked while exposing them to freezing temperatures.
Justice Department spokesman Peter Carr called Bradbury “a dedicated public servant and a superb lawyer” who has led his office with distinction.
Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., said that by renominating Bradbury “the president has thumbed his nose at Congress.”
Durbin and nine other Democrats are asking Attorney General Michael Mukasey to clarify his views on waterboarding. In a letter sent Wednesday, they told Mukasey there has been “ample time for you to study this issue.”
