Freeland: No Waterboarding—Even To Save Nine Planeloads of People

NewsBusters ^ | Mark Finkelstein

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Would you waterboard an al Qaeda member for three minutes to get information to save the lives of nine passenger-loads of innocent civilians? Chrystia Freeland wouldn't. The US managing editor of the Financial Times made the stunning statement during the course of a classic Morning Joe dust-up today. Joe Scarborough, with help from tag-team partner Pat Buchanan, went after Freeland on her opposition to waterboarding and similar interrogation techniques. At one point Scarborough called Freeland "sophomoric." Later, the exasperated MJ host gave his guest some of the same treatment to which he'd recently been subjected by Zbigniew Brzezinski, telling Freeland "you have no idea what you're talking about."

Finally, under questioning from Buchanan, Freeland went so far as to disagree with the proposition that it would be moral to waterboard someone for three minutes to get information to foil a plot to simultaneously kill nine passenger planeloads of people.

View video here.

[governsleastgovernsbest]

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Exquisite MSM moral sensibilities ping to Today show list.

[jersey117]

These people are incredibly stupid and deserve whatever comes their way.

[Dawn531]

Anybody watch 24 last night? Specifically the scene where Jack was being questioned about torture by the Congressional committee?

[Le Chien Rouge]

Would you waterboard an al Qaeda member for three minutes to get information to save the lives of nine passenger-loads of innocent civilians? Chrystia Freeland wouldn’t. The US managing editor of the Financial Times made the stunning statement during the course of a classic Morning Joe dust-up today.

I’ll bet she would use water-boarding on al Qaeda if they where going to bomb a planned parenthood clinic!!!

[brytlea]

And yet, I bet she would waterboard, or worse, someone to save herself or someone she cared about.

[usconservative]

I did, and I personally thought that scene was far too short. I would've preferred a good 15 - 20 minutes of the first hour to be devoted to questions directed towards Jack Bauer, with him telling various panel members to go piss up a rope.

From what I had read last year, the bulk of the premiere was to be a defense of Jack's techniques at obtaining information, it appears from last night we won't be seeing much of that beyond the 6-7 minutes of it from last night.

I will say this though: having Tony Almeida turn bad guy and go head to head with Jack is an interesting twist and I do look forward to see how that plays out.

[Vaquero]

last nights 24, had Jack Bauer in front of a Senate Comittee talking about something similar......

[capt. norm]

FREELAND: I disagree. I think there's a very, very clear line.

And yet she has NO IDEA what that "clear line" is!

[alrea]

Would you waterboard an al Qaeda member for three minutes to get information to save the lives of nine passenger-loads of innocent civilians?

Only if the President is a Democrat.

[Blue Jays]

Freeland is very juvenile and pathetically immature in her thoughts.

[Maneesh]

That scene is right out of a Vince Flynn novel where blowhard Senators questions Mitch Rapp who is a Jack Bauer type character. The scary thing is that there are actually people in the Senate : Kennedy, Durban, Kerry...just to name 3 that would not advocate torture a prisoner under any circumstance even if it meant saving innocent lives. Obama has said so clearly as well. Liberal Lemmings in full display.....a part of me says that one of the close relatives of a Senator should be kidnapped and the FBI should have a prisoner in custody that can save the relative; what would they do then. We all know what Mike Dukakis would do...let his relative die.

[Magic Fingers]

The least we can hope for is that if it’s going to happen anyway, she’ll be on one of those planes.

[brytlea]

I was thinking last night, tho, that Tony will probably turn out to have gone bad for good reasons. But I could be wrong. 24 sometimes surprises me.

[nutmeg]

Would you waterboard an al Qaeda member for three minutes to get information to save the lives of nine passenger-loads of innocent civilians? Chrystia Freeland wouldn't. The US managing editor of the Financial Times made the stunning statement during the course of a classic Morning Joe dust-up today. Joe Scarborough, with help from tag-team partner Pat Buchanan, went after Freeland on her opposition to waterboarding and similar interrogation techniques. At one point Scarborough called Freeland "sophomoric." Later, the exasperated MJ host gave his guest some of the same treatment to which he'd recently been subjected by Zbigniew Brzezinski, telling Freeland "you have no idea what you're talking about."

Unfortunately, the Obama administration pretty much agrees with Ms. Freeland. It's gonna be a rough 4-8 years...

[Falcon4.0]

They need to ask the question the way a liberal asks about sending your kid off to war.

"Would you water board a terrorist to find out where your kid is at before they behead him or her alive?"

[mgc1122]

“Freeland went so far as to disagree with the proposition that it would be moral to waterboard someone for three minutes to get information to foil a plot to simultaneously kill nine passenger planeloads of people.”

Let’s test this comment. I need Freeland on a plane by himself auto controlled from the ground by terrorists ... we have 10 minutes before the plane crashes, one terrorist in custody ... since it’s only your ass on the line, what do we do Freeland? Read him rights or waterboard?

[jersey117]

If saving nine plane loads of people isn’t a clear line, I can’t imagine what would be.

[doug from upland]

Just wait until the day comes when someone has to be waterboarded to save her own children. Then let’s see the answer.