Droning on to little avail
by digby
If you have not had time to read the Intercept’s blockbuster report on the Drone war, I hope you will bookmark it for when you have some time over the week-end. It’s important.
In the meantime, read this summary from Micah Zenko at Foreign Policy which hits the important highlights and calls for a congressional inquiry — which, depressingly, he highly doubts we’ll see. And I agree.
Here’s an excerpt:
This series calls into question many U.S. government claims about lethal counterterrorism strikes, which should compel long-overdue, rigorous oversight hearings by the relevant congressional committees and a full and complete public investigation of U.S. targeted killing policies — similar to the Senate Select Intelligence Committee (SSCI) report of the CIA’s rendition and interrogation program.
Unfortunately, in recent conversations with policymakers surrounding these programs, I have again learned that there is not just weariness about discussing them, but also a collective shoulder-shrug about the possibility of any serious investigations or reforms. In April, when Obama announced the deaths of three U.S. citizens and one Italian citizen in drone strikes, the chair and co-chair of the SSCI, Sens. Richard Burr and Dianne Feinstein respectively, declared that U.S. targeted killing policies should be reviewed. That never happened. And, of course, those close to the White House still claim U.S. counterterrorism operations were “reformed” in May 2013. They were not.
Judging by the presidential debates in both parties (so far) there’s no interest in taking this on. The Pentagon isn’t all that thrilled with this program (perhaps because it isn’t theirs) which just proves that the CIA is driving the bus. But then, this is an assassination program which has always been one of their bailiwicks. Basically a secret, unaccountable agency is running the global military of the most powerful nation on earth. A nation that prides itself on it’s open, democratic system of government. Odd …
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