Who are the Post’s sources for this full-scale vindication of Dick Cheney’s defense of torture? “Two sources who described the sessions, speaking on the condition of anonymity because much information about detainee confinement remains classified”; “one former senior intelligence official said this week after being asked about the effect of waterboarding”; “one former U.S. official with detailed knowledge of how the interrogations were carried out said”; “One former agency official.” It’s unclear how much overlap there is in that orgy of pro-Cheney anonymity, but there is not a single on-the-record source to corroborate the Torture-Saved-Us-From-Mass-Death narrative, nor is there even a shred of information about the motives or views of these “officials.”

“The average person can take this for 14 seconds,” Marine Sergeant Clay South answered, adding, “He’s going to wiggle, he’s going to scream, he’s going to wish he never did this.”

With a Chicago Fire Department paramedic on hand, Mancow was placed on a 7-foot long table, his legs were elevated, and his feet were tied up.

Turns out the stunt wasn’t so funny. Witnesses said Muller thrashed on the table, and even instantly threw the toy cow he was holding as his emergency tool to signify when he wanted the experiment to stop. He only lasted 6 or 7 seconds.

I clearly don’t agree with John McCain on practically every issue under the sun, but I’ll say that he’s been pretty consistent in his opposition to torture and in light of Cheney’s torture defense speech today — McCain remains so. And of course it’s worth noting that in this entire debate, Sen. McCain is one of the few people discussing this issue who has actually been tortured.

And look, I know all these roads seem to lead to Dick Cheney, but Dick Cheney was the vice president. The buck on all of this lays at the feet of George W. Bush.

After 9/11, the Democrats not only lost their marbles the way the rest of us did at the horror, they also had their spines turn to jelly politically. After years of polling showing conservative superiority on national security issues, Democrats did the stupid thing and caved in to the right on security issue after issue – on issues ranging from the invasion of Iraq to the use of torture and warrantless wiretapping.

Now, many of us out there in liberalland did – and still – knew better than those in DC on our side of the aisle. We rejected the notion that conservatives know anything about national security, let alone the idea that they are more trustworthy on the issue.

Oh sure, around 2005-6 the Democratic party itself started talking a better game on these issues, but that doesn’t change the fact that from 01-04 they were limp noodles. They gave the Bush administration a free pass, and went along to go along. That doesn’t absolve them of guilt. They voted for things and supported policies no member of a liberal party should have done.

But.

We only have one President. He, and he alone, made the final decision on these issues – congressional authorization or not. Congress gave him the loaded weapon, but he chose whether or not to pull the trigger. George Bush authorized the torture of people, and while the congress turned a blind eye to it and authorized it and deserves some of the blame for it, it is Bush and his henchmen who committed the act itself.

I feel its probably likely that Speaker Pelosi was an accessory to these acts, but George W. Bush was the trigger man.

What matters is that the government tortured people.

(The argument over whether the evidence was good or not is mostly a red herring, as well)

Also, Harry Reid seems to have taken a break from continually getting rolled by the Senate Republicans to come out against an investigation into an activity that stained the soul of America. A lot of brilliance there, as usual.

“Are you in favor of releasing the documents that Dick Cheney has been requesting be released?,” asked Rep. Rohrbacher.

“Well, it won’t surprise you, I don’t consider him a particularly reliable source of information,” responded Secretary Clinton to a smattering of laughter in the hearing room.

Congressman Rohrbacher appeared none too pleased and went at it again. “Madam Secretary, I asked you a specific question,” he said sternly.

“Congressman, I believe we ought to get to the bottom of this entire matter. I think it is in the best interest of our country and that is what the president believes and that is why he has taken the actions he did,” said Clinton.

Bush administration officials from Vice President Dick Cheney on down signed off on using harsh interrogation techniques against suspected terrorists after asking the Justice Department to endorse their legality, The Associated Press has learned.

The officials also took care to insulate President Bush from a series of meetings where CIA interrogation methods, including waterboarding, which simulates drowning, were discussed and ultimately approved.

A former senior U.S. intelligence official familiar with the meetings described them Thursday to the AP to confirm details first reported by ABC News on Wednesday. The intelligence official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to publicly discuss the issue.

Who’s in charge here?